Diversity is essential to excellence in higher education and beyond. Inasmuch as biodiversity is critical in maintaining delicate balances within and across ecosystems that ensure survival, diversity as a core element of excellence enhances the respective communities from which individuals come, but more importantly, it enhances the larger human condition. Despite substantive evidence of the myriad benefits of diversity, there are concerted efforts to delegitimize Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) progress through anti-DEI legislation at the local, state, and federal levels. The sociopolitical climate has a chilling atmosphere, which suggests DEI is antithetical to free thought, freedom of speech, and meritocracy.

Central to the mission of higher education is critical inquiry, knowledge production, and problem-solving, which are critical to the continued advancement of society. As such, if higher education is to be a vehicle whereby we interrogate and address complex issues, it is important to recognize that our excellence as an institution is dependent upon diverse perspectives and ideas in order to achieve the collective and intended impact. Though it can be difficult to construct a shared meaning, innovative solutions often come as a result of contributions from diverse viewpoints (Sun et al., 2016). Further, in recognizing that diverse perspectives and ideas are necessary for the advancement and vitality of our society, we must also acknowledge that diverse viewpoints are a function of and connected to the lived experiences of individuals and their respective identities that shape the way they come to know and understand the world.

Through this discussion, panelists will draw upon their expertise and experience as scholars and practitioners to offer counternarratives and frame the essentiality of diversity to our collective understanding of what excellence encompasses.



SPEAKERS

Elizabeth R. Cole — Director of the National Center for Institutional Diversity; University Diversity & Social Transformation Professor; and Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, Psychology, and Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan

Carson Byrd — Associate Research Scientist in the Center for the Study of Higher & Postsecondary Education at the University of Michigan

Mitchell Chang — Interim Vice Provost of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion; Professor of Education and Asian American Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles

Robin Means-Coleman — Professor of Media Studies and Professor in the Carter G. Woodson Institute for African American and African Studies at the University of Virginia

Robert M. Sellers — Charles D. Moody Collegiate Professor of Psychology, and Professor of Education at the University of Michigan