About
Our Commitment
Over the past two decades, the University of Richmond has strengthened and accelerated its ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), first as pillars of two strategic plans and now in its stated values. In 2019, our campus community identified and adopted the interlocking goals of representation, belonging, and capability as the focus of our shared DEIB work.
Our vision is to become a skilled intercultural and anti-racist community where each person can belong and thrive. We have hard work ahead to ensure that our culture, policies, and practices fully reflect our vision. We must do more and we must do better together.
Our Work
Equity & Community, which brings together the Office for Institutional Equity & Inclusion and the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, is one part of a much larger matrix supporting DEIB work at the University of Richmond.
The Student Center for Equity & Inclusion creates a welcoming environment that supports the academic and personal development of a diverse community of students, and units across campus – from Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) to Richmond Athletics to the Faculty Hub – are providing critical support for our community and advancing DEIB in varying ways.
Our distributed leadership model furthers our goals and demonstrates institutional accountability for our progress. We are focused on short-term, meaningful actions and long-term planning and alignment and aim to engage each member of our campus community in our work to become an inclusive, thriving intercultural community.
Theory of Change
Too often, DEIB work is positioned as a problem to quickly solve and the words themselves – diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging – are disconnected from the aim of addressing historical inequities still felt by marginalized and underrepresented people. At UR, we acknowledge this tension, balancing the urgent need to address the lived experiences of students, staff, faculty, and community members with the understanding that changing practices, policies, and structures is ongoing, messy, and sometimes slow work. Culture change takes time.