Stories of equity, diversity and Inclusion
UNCG’S BRYAN SCHOOL RAMPS UP EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION EFFORTS WITH NEW DEAN’S FELLOW FOR SCHOOL CLIMATE
A new position created at UNC Greensboro’s Bryan School of Business and Economics will focus specifically on school climate as it pertains to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI). Continued
A flair for fashion
LaParia Speight ‘21 (Consumer, Apparel, and Retail Studies), ‘22 MS fell in love with fashion in the seventh grade. “I was in a home-economics class, and I learned I could make things on my own,” she remembers. Speight started sewing pillows and purses and selling them to family members. At the time, she dreamed of a career in fashion because of the freedom she’d have to stretch her creativity. Today, as a recent graduate of UNC Greensboro’s … Continued
UNCG Bryan undergrad, 34, healing years of self-doubt, one course at a time
When Leo Frietas was 17 years old, he found out he didn’t have the necessary credentials as a United States citizen to attend college. A native of Canada, Frietas spent most of his life going back to his home country every couple of years to renew his visa – but the attacks on September 11, 2001 hindered progress on his citizenship status. … Continued
From our dean
UNC Greensboro was founded in 1891 as the State Normal and Industrial School. The school, the first and only public university in North Carolina founded for the purpose of educating women, provided instruction in business, domestic science, and teaching. There are two critical points here. First, business was one of the foundational disciplines at UNCG. Second, UNCG was founded to promote Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI). The takeaway is that EDI is in the Bryan School’s DNA.
While, for the longest time, the concern was equity for women, increasing gender diversity in the workplace, and ensuring that women were included, our understanding of those has expanded over 130-plus years to embrace equity, inclusion, and diversity in all their forms, and without regard to whether it is for students, faculty, or staff.
I believe it is this commitment to EDI that has helped the Bryan School become the most diverse business school in North Carolina in student enrollment. As important, the Bryan School also graduates more African American undergraduate business students and the combination of African American and LatinX undergraduate business students, than ANY business school in North Carolina; no other business school is close.
If you ask why we are so successful, I can offer several reasons.
- As noted above, EDI is in our DNA at UNCG and the Bryan School. Related to that is that a diverse population attracts others who want to be part of that diverse population.
- UNCG and the Bryan School are known for providing a Culture of Care; it was a major part of my attraction to the opportunity to become dean of the Bryan School 12 years ago. Students recognize that and value it, as do our faculty and staff. It is not merely about caring for our students; it is about mutual care and respect that connects in all directions.
- Beyond the Culture of Care is the sense of inclusion and belonging. I hear that often from our students, but it starts with our faculty members and staff. They are committed to inclusion and belonging for all our students.
- While our faculty and staff are not as diverse as I would like, we are far more diverse than our peer and aspirant business schools around the U.S. Students, faculty, and staff know that and appreciate it.
We are not perfect. Far from it. Nonetheless, EDI is important to us in the Bryan School, and we will continue to strive to improve. We will do so not because it is politically correct or popular, but because we value it. Furthermore, research has demonstrated that diverse perspectives yield better decisions. As we strive to develop, and be, exceptional problem solvers, EDI is imperative for our future success.
