How colleges and university will implement specific strategies to enhance diversity and inclusion is another story. That will undoubtedly prove to be a much more difficult task.
But hundreds of college officials—from athletic directors, coaches, faculty and student affairs personnel—have come here to at least begin the conversation that NCAA officials hope will translate into action.
“Tolerance is just the bare minimum of what we do,” said Dr. Ange-Marie Hancock, associate professor of political science and gender studies at the University of Southern California, who was one of several panelists to speak at the forum, which began Saturday and ends Monday. “We have to get past tolerance and get to solidarity.”
Still, the ongoing process of confronting “unconscious bias” is one that requires steady vigilance and work and goes much deeper than engaging in discussions about race.
Over three days, these participants are exploring the varying forms of inclusion with regard to distinct groups such as transgender athletes and persons with disabilities. They are also talking about race and gender privilege.
It’s a conversation that not many of them are having on their college campuses, which is why the annual pilgrimage to this forum has proved useful to so many in the past.
