WSU Campus | Photo by Soham Parikh | The Wright State Guardian
President of Wright State’s Alpha Phi Alpha says that he and other students of color do not feel that Wright State is properly handling racial issues on campus.
In a letter to the campus community on Sept. 28, Wright State University’s (WSU) Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. expressed their concerns with the university’s response to racial injustice in America and on campus.
Incidents on campus
“Since the inception of the Black Lives Matter movement, there have been hundreds of cases where innocent people of color have been murdered, for no other reason, than the color of their skin,” according to the letter. “Here, at Wright State, we have also seen the same oppressive and systemic injustices on a smaller, but still relevant scale.”
Many racially charged events occurred over the summer that President of WSU Alpha Phi Alpha Da’Von Hicks feels was not addressed properly by the university.
“I don’t feel, and a lot of students of color don’t feel, that the university has addressed or even mentioned a statement at all about the things that have happened, until students of color started to question the university,” said Hicks. “Why are posts being posted about scheduling classes and dorms and housing… at the times that Black lives are being taken in the street, and even at the times that rallies and riots were going on? And nothing was being said by the university.”
Alpha Phi Alpha cites several of these injustices including inequity in academic awards and scholarship allotments to minority students, consistent issues with The Rock where individuals are allowed to defame entire ethnic groups on campus, lack of necessary implicit bias training and lack of a designated staff member who is specifically responsible for working with underrepresented minorities to make sure their issues are heard and addressed.
“In our eyes, this university for the past 50+ years has failed to stand for the equity and equality of ALL students,” according to the letter. “By doing so, the university has sent a very telling message to students of color and those allies who lend their financial support to the university, that their voices and concerns are not important.”
WSU’s response
In the days since the killing of George Floyd in May, WSU has created a racial equity task force made up of current students, faculty, staff and alumni.
“We seek to provide meaningful, ongoing interventions against white supremacy institutionally embedded in American life,” said the racial equity task force in a letter to President Sue Edwards on July 21. “United as students, faculty, staff, administration and alumni, the Racial Equity Task Force acknowledges the specific prejudices and intersectional oppressions experienced by students, faculty and staff of color and will actively pursue pathways for their safety and success. Anything less is complicit in perpetuating racism.”
President Edwards continues to comment on the equity and inclusion of the Wright State campus and has sent out several letters to the community on the topic.
“For an institution to really be excellent, we have to be inclusive,” said Edwards. “It also shifts responsibility for diversity and inclusion to everybody on the campus — from the Board of Trustees to our students and our alumni. One person or one unit cannot accomplish a cultural shift.”
While students of color appreciate the efforts that the university president has made to connect and listen to everyone’s voice, they recognize that more needs to be done.
“Letters from the president are very assuring from her individual perspective and we love that she is actually reaching out to the students, but on a wide scale as far as marketing goes and university admin… that reflects a lot back on the university,” said Hicks. “Wright State preaches a lot about being diverse, but it isn’t really shown in support to those students.”
Taking action
Alpha Phi Alpha announced in their letter to the community that they sent a letter to Gov. Mike Dewine, asking him to enact O.R.C. section 3345.76 Division B. This would essentially replace members of the WSU Board of Trustees with members that reflect the ethnic population of the diversity.
The fraternity is also calling on Edwards to create a policy that allows for an equitable hiring ratio of underrepresented minorities.
“We also encourage the university to make the hiring of the vice president of inclusive excellence, formally known as the chief diversity officer, a Title 9 coordinator and Director of the Bolinga Black Cultural Resource Center, a top priority on the university’s hiring list, because without that role the university cannot ensure that the diversity mentioned in its mission is fully realized, and not just empty words,” according to the letter.
The university plans to provide training in implicit bias to faculty, staff, students and trustees, according to Edwards.
Wright State also continues to offer inclusive excellence forums throughout the semester.
“We know that there are allies with us who want to see these things happen and it is our unified responsibility to stop playing politics and start valuing our stakeholders and relationships,” said Alpha Phi Alpha in the letter. “We are confident this will happen, but only with all of us.”
