Diversity and Inclusion

College of Education Council on Racial Equity and Justice (COREJ)

The mission of the Council on Racial Equity and Justice (pronounced COURAGE) is to elevate research and amplify faculty, staff and student voices on matters of structural and systemic racism, white supremacy, anti-Blackness and the intersecting issues of oppression and power within the College of Education (COE). Members serve as advisors, liaisons, and data gatherers to provide the Dean of COE with recommendations on how to move forward with racial equity and justice initiatives, policies, and practices. Central to the mission of COREJ is having representation from all departments, faculty, staff, and students at all levels. The COE’s values of impact, excellence, diversity, inclusion, innovation, social justice, collaboration and community will undergird the work of the council.

Council Member Responsibilities

• Operate from a set of principles that are derived collaboratively with other council members
• Develop an assessment (e.g. equity audit) to research what is being done in each department around racial equity and justice
• Design a comprehensive plan for COE in addressing inequities, clearly identifying markers of progress, and accountability 
• Draft a vision for COE to advance racial equity and justice efforts based on data gathered
• Partner with the COE Senate, COE Faculty of Color, APT Committees, and other COE groups to advance racial equity, and justice goals

From Action to Impact: The 2022 Strategic Plan of the UMD College of Education

The College's five-year strategic plan outlines our mission, vision and values, as well as three pillars of action we will address over the coming years. Diversity and inclusion, along with social justice, are core values of our institution.

Our Eight Core Values are:

Impact: What we do makes a difference.
Excellence: We approach our work with integrity, rigor and a focus on quality.
Diversity and Inclusion: We engage, acknowledge, and honor a wide variety of ideas, voices, and perspectives.
Innovation: We do not rely on the status quo; we are pioneers.
Social Justice: We believe that resources should be equitably available to everyone in society; we believe in the dignity and humanity of all people.
Collaboration: We achieve more when we support one another and work together to reach our strategic goals.
Community: We are each part of something bigger; we engage with and support communities both internal and external to our College. 

Meet Our Diversity Officer

Mary Taylor-Lewis will be responsible for developing and enhancing DEI initiatives across the college and creating new systems and processes to help integrate inclusion, equity and justice into our work and culture. Mary brings more than nine years of experience in designing institutional policies, cultivating relationships and developing and evaluating high-impact programming.  For more information about Mary, please go to: https://education.umd.edu/directory/mary-taylor-lewis

Meet our ADVANCE Professor

Dr. Jennifer Danridge Turner is Associate Professor in Reading Education at the University of Maryland, College Park. She received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with a specialization in Literacy from Michigan State University. Dr. Turner’s scholarship centers on two interrelated domains: a) Black youth futures, which amplifies the dreams (e.g., career aspirations, life goals, societal transformations) that Black youth determine for themselves despite societal barriers, structural inequalities, and personal obstacles; and (2) equity pedagogies, or literacy instructional approaches that celebrate Black youths' cultural knowledges and racialized identities while cultivating their freedom dreams/dreaming. For more information about Dr. Turner, please go to: https://education.umd.edu/directory/jennifer-d-turner

Please contact the individuals listed on the websites above for details. The scholarships and fellowships above are from organizations outside of the University of Maryland College Park. While the University is not responsible for funding these opportunities, please go to https://education.umd.edu/admissions/funding-scholarships for UMD scholarships.

The College of Education has a wealth of news and events related to equity, diversity and inclusion. Below are recent events.

Dr. Ebony Terrell Shockley Co-PI of NSF Grant to create pathways to science research (Oct. 27, 2020)

Math Education Ph.D. Student Francesca Henderson receives American Educator Panels Award (Oct. 23, 2020)

Watch Drs. Diaz McKechnie, Shin, Terrell Shockley, Napp Avelli, & Kelly in Why I Vote and #EdTerpVote Videos. (Oct. 10, 2020)

Drs. Quintos, Galindo, and Napp-Avelli receive 2.5M NSF grant to study math in multilingual classrooms (Sept. 24, 2020)

"We must all rise up to face racial injustice" - President Daryl Pines (Aug 27. 2020)

"Are Campus Leaders Prepared for the Impact of the Racial Crisis?" (Jul 7, 2020)

#UMDSolidarity and the Diversity Gap Podcast (June 5, 2020)

Virtual Sunshine: Video lessons for professional school counselors with Drs. Jessica McKechnie & Natasha Mitchell (May 27, 2020)

Professor Kimberly Griffin Appears in @NewRepublic Article (May 28, 2020)

First Black UMD-COE Grad Elaine Johnson-Coates ('59) Receives Honorary Degree (May 22, 2020)

Fulbright Award from COE Student (May 21, 2020)

Associate Professor Michelle Espino Receives Faculty Mentoring of the Year Award (May 20, 2020)

Celebrating Asian-American and Pacific-Islander Heritage Month (May 12, 2020)

Director & Associate Clinical Professor Dr. Candace Moore on Panel: Emerging Issues in African University (May 12, 2020)

Undergraduate Research Fellows for Project RISE  (led by COE Assistant Professor Shenika Hankerson) (April 23, 2020) 

Anti-Bias Curricula in Early Childhood Education (March 2020)

Researchers to Study COVID 19 Discrimination (March 3, 2020)

Designing Core Practices for English Learners (February 27, 2020)

College of Education Alumni of Color Reception (February 25, 2020)

Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast Podcast featuring Professor Fries-Britt (February 25, 2020)

COE Diversity Officer Recognized at Symposium (February 13, 2020)

Study STEAM Education in Mexico (February 12, 2020)

School District Partnership on Improving Schools (January 18, 2020) 

Assistant Professor Richard Prather Interviewed for The New York Times Magazine (January 6, 2020)

Every community owes its existence and strength to the generations before them, around the world, who contributed their hopes, dreams, and energy into making the history that led to this moment.

Truth and acknowledgement are critical in building mutual respect and connections across all barriers of heritage and difference.

So, we acknowledge the truth that is often buried: We are on the ancestral lands of the Piscataway People, who are the ancestral stewards of this sacred land. It is their historical responsibility to advocate for the four-legged, the winged, those that crawl and those that swim. They remind us that clean air and pristine waterways are essential to all life.

This Land Acknowledgement is a vocal reminder for each of us as two-leggeds to ensure our physical environment is in better condition than what we inherited, for the health and prosperity of future generations.

The COE Bias Incident Response Team aids students,faculty, and staff who experienced or witnessed an incident of hate/bias, harassment, and/or discrimination.Our aim is to create a support system with a clear set of options that empowers the individual experiencing harm to choose their own path to healing,reconciliation, and reparations.

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