President Renu Khator encourages meaningful dialogue through the Center for Diversity and Inclusion and other outlets as part of her plan to confront racial injustice. | Christopher Charleston/The Cougar
President Renu Khator announced four actions the University will take to combat racial injustice in light of George Floyd’s death, according to a statement made on Wednesday.
Khator’s plans include creating a University-wide group of faculty, staff, students and alumni to evaluate racism within the UH and greater Houston area.
From there, the group is expected to have relevant conversations and brainstorm more actions the University can take.
“Our University feels a moral responsibility to help our campus and the Houston community heal and is committed to doing what we can,” Khator said in the statement. “But we don’t assume that these initiatives alone will resolve the complex problems behind the systematic racism that has existed for decades.”
Asking the University’s various deans and directors to have conversations revolving around racism in their own departments is the second action Khator plans on taking. The goal behind this is to hear more ways on how UH can handle race-related issues.
Additionally, Khator is requesting the Center for Diversity and Inclusion and the Office of the Provost to host educational sessions revolving around race for the University community.
“In addition the Provost’s Office will host national thought leaders on race and inclusion to help advance our thinking and plans for action as a Tier One University,” she said. “Most of these sessions will be open to students and information will be forthcoming.”
This list of actions is coming after a previously made statement by Khator about systematic racism. The previous statement sparked some students to petition, demanding Khator to take actions to take on racism beyond an email.
“We are encouraged to hear motivated students speaking up and coming up with ideas and solutions,” Khator said. “We are interested in listening to you, incorporating your ideas and bringing forth meaningful change.”
