University of Maryland Libraries
Diversity Committee
Annual Report
January-December 2001
Mission:
The Libraries' Diversity Committee exists to implement the campus' Diversity Initiative in the libraries and on campus. It is essential to recognize, respect, and promote each individual's uniqueness within the larger and more important context of our shared experience as human beings. The Committee is dedicated to staff and patron education to increase diversity awareness and positive change in the library environment.The Libraries' Diversity Committee activities for 2001 can be broken
down into three general areas of endeavor: public program activities, committee
building activities and external contact and representation activities.
This report first summarizes the Committee's public activities then its
internal and external activities.
Public program activities
The Diversity Committee continued to hold its monthly brown bag video series (held January to May, then September to December 2001). The programs included such topics as Martin Luther King, the dilemmas of aging, communication in the workplace, Japanese American relocation and reverse discrimination.With the campus Office of Human Relations Programs we co-sponsored the Faculty Diversity Research Forum on Race, Gender and Identity: Portrayals of Diversity in the Media (March 2001).
Heleni Pedersoli, Barbara Nail-Chiwetalu and Ann Masnik produced and presented a poster session based on the Diversity Committee website and database at the ALA annual meeting (June 2001).
The Committee alerted Libraries community to air dates of the POV Video Series and copied programs for later viewing (Summer 2001).
The Committee organized a special Libraries Diversity Forum featuring
professor of Government and Politics Benjamin Barber. Professor Barber
spoke on "Multiculturalism: Source of or Antidote to Jihad?" (December
2001).
Committee building activities
The Diversity Committee strategic plan was finalized February 2001.The Committee held its first Retreat in July.
The Diversity Coordinator function was separated from Committee chairship in the Summer of 2001. Tom Connors was chosen as chair. Ann Masnik remained Diversity Coordinator.
The Continuous Learning Subcommittee continued discussions with Continuous Learning Curriculum staff on diversity content for the learning curriculum.
The 2000 Annual Report and other items were added to Diversity Committee
website,
External activities
Committee members attended the Success 2001 conference (Fall 2001?)
and the Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Education graduation reception (May
2001).
Committee member Ann Masnik along with Dean Lowry and Donna King participated
in the campus Equity Conference (May 2001).
