31 May 2020
by NACA

NACA Statement Against Racial Violence

The deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor are painful. Racism, oppression, and violent acts directed towards Black people continues in our society and within our college communities. Black lives matter and NACA sees you, hears you, supports you, and stands with you.

As an Association with a new vision "To create college communities where everyone belongs" we know there is much work to be done for our college communities – and our society – to truly become environments where everyone belongs. The Association is committed to doing more to promote diversity in programs and services as we aim to transform college communities through inclusive learning, meaningful connections, and engaging entertainment. Several of the immediate actions the Association took was to stand in solidarity with the Black community as the music industry hosted "Blackout Tuesday" (June 2) and host a Coffee & Conversations (June 4) webinar for members intended to be a brave space for colleagues to see, hear, and support one another (a recording of the webinar is available in NACA Encore).

Diversity and inclusion are core values of the Association. In 2016, the Association adopted a Statement on Diversity and a Statement on Non-Discrimination, Diversity Advancement and Affirmative Action Principles. In 2017, the Association identified a need to equip professionals to impact social justice and advocate for diversity and inclusion in its 2017-20 strategic plan and also established the Competencies for Diversity & Inclusion. The competencies are designed to assist students and professional staff in developing an increased awareness of diversity and inclusion and to offer guidelines for facilitating diverse and engaged communities on campuses. We encourage members to review and utilize these statements and competencies in their work and programming.

Download the full statement

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