BLOOMINGTON – Calling it a bold and critical step, Indiana University President Pamela Whitten has announced a $30 million fund to accelerate IU’s efforts to hire a more diverse mix of faculty, including researchers.
The seven-year Presidential Diversity Hiring Initiative will focus on hiring from groups traditionally underrepresented in higher education, with the ambition of increasing their representation among faculty.
“Now is the time to provide our students with access to world-class teachers and researchers from multiple perspectives,” Whitten said. “As a university, we have already taken important steps toward greater diversity, and our resolve will now be matched by significant investment.”
Beyond replacing open roles, new faculty positions will be added as part of the effort. Hires will support the academic needs and goals for all IU campuses across a broad range of disciplines.
The initiative will employ reallocated resources from non-academic services, as well as external gifts, to support this first-of-its-kind fund for the university. The IU Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs will manage the effort, providing insight into the process as part of a dedicated webinar in October for those leading faculty hiring at each of IU’s seven campuses.
“Our collective commitment to a more diverse faculty will have a positive impact on our university, as well as on our state and beyond,” said Quinn Buckner, chair of the IU Board of Trustees. “This ambitious initiative sparked by President Whitten will advance a new generation of scholars, and we will all be better for it.”
Information News at IU
