Asnuntuck Community College Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement
Asnuntuck Community College believes that access to a high-quality education in an inclusive environment is the right of all individuals. We have a responsibility to provide equitable access, support, and opportunities for all students, particularly students of color, low-income students, and other historically underrepresented students.1
The college is committed to reviewing and creating policies and practices that promote inclusiveness, social justice, and respect for all within the campus community.2 Differences are welcomed, different perspectives are respectfully heard, and every individual feels a sense of belonging and inclusion.
By embracing the concept of equity, Asnuntuck Community College pledges to the removal of barriers and the creation of a safe environment that allows individuals of diverse backgrounds to successfully engage in the life of the college.3
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1 “Examples of historically underrepresented students include but are not limited to: first-generation students; low-income students; students of color; non-traditional age students; students with marginalized orientations and gender identities; intersex students; students who are English-language learners; undocumented students; veterans; students with disabilities; students with dependents; foster care youth; formerly and currently incarcerated students” (“Equity”).
2 Campus community includes students, faculty, staff, and community partners.
3 For addition information and resources, see “Equity.”
Asnuntuck DEI Committee Introduction
Our statement underscores the institution's commitment to providing every individual with the right to a high-quality education in an inclusive environment. The college takes responsibility for ensuring equitable access, support, and opportunities, with a particular focus on historically underrepresented groups such as students of color and those with low-income backgrounds. As part of its mission, Asnuntuck Community College continually reviews and develops policies and practices that foster inclusiveness, social justice, and respect for all members of the campus community. Embracing diversity and different perspectives, the college endeavors to cultivate a sense of belonging and inclusion for every individual. Through a dedicated commitment to equity, the college is actively working to eliminate barriers and create a safe and supportive environment that encourages individuals from diverse backgrounds to thrive and engage fully in the college experience. The DEI Committee at Asnuntuck Community College is actively recruiting students to join its ranks. Comprised of members representing staff, faculty, and administrators, the committee is dedicated to upholding the college's robust Equity Statement.
Students interested to joining our committee that meets face-to-face once a month for 1.5 hours and can commit their time for the academic year, contact Bonnie L Solivan, Dawn Bryden or Jillian Sullivan.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Members
- Mary Bidwell, Interim Associate Dean Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center
- Robert Brown, Faculty of Communication
- Dawn Bryden, Interim Dean of Student Development and DEI Co-Chair
- Erica Charis-Molling, Director of Campus Library Services
- Monica Kedzior, Campus Supervisor Financial Aid
- Stephen Maytan, Adjunct Faculty
- Sherry Paquette, Director of Student Activities
- Kellie Payne, Manufacturing Advisor
- Timothy St. James, Dean of Students and Faculty and DEI Co-Chair
- Jillian Sullivan, Campus Disability Services Coordinator and DEI Co-Chair
- India Weaver, Guided Pathways Advisor
- Kelly Zieba, Guided Pathways Advisor
- Bonnie L Solivan, Instructional Design & Ed Tech Campus Lead Coordinator and DEI Co-Chair
CSCU Resources
- CSCU Anti-Racism Resources GuideThe Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system is committed to bold and disruptive change by actively identifying, naming, and dismantling structural racism. To that end and in alignment with the CSCU Library Consortium’s Strategic Directions, a task force of the consortium’s Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice Team has adapted this Anti-racism Resources Guide from a guide created by Fitchburg State University. The task force wishes to thank Fitchburg State University for granting permission to adapt their guide.
CT State D.E.I. Databases
- African-American History This link opens in a new window This resource offers a fresh way to explore the full spectrum of African-American history and culture for the past 500 years. Hundreds of videos, as well as speeches, timelines, biographies, and countless informative articles are contained in this unique database. View the Topic Centers for specific subjects, such as the Underground Railroad, the Harlem Renaissance, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which include articles, sharable slideshows, videos and primary sources.
- Black Freedom Struggle in the United States This link opens in a new window “Black Freedom Struggle in the United States: Challenges and Triumphs in the Pursuit of Equality”. A free, open resource for students, educators and others who are researching U.S. Black history. The site features over 2,000 curated primary-source documents related to critical people and events in African American history. Featured subjects: Slavery and Abolitionist Movement (1790-1860), Civil War and Reconstruction Era (1861-1877), Jim Crow Era from 1878 to the Great Depression (1878-1932), New Deal and World War II (1933-1945), Civil Rights and Black Power Movements (1946-1975), Contemporary Era (1976-2000s).
- Diversity & Ethnic Studies eBook Collection This link opens in a new window This subscription collection includes academic eBooks related to diversity, anti-racism, ethnic studies, disability studies, gerontology & age studies, migration studies, gender and sexuality studies, cultural studies, and religious studies. The collection utilizes outside resources and scholarship to ensure that the collection remains up to date and aligned with current research.
- Ethnic Diversity Source This link opens in a new window With its curated full-text materials, Ethnic Diversity Source is essential to support the study of African Americans, Arab Americans, Asian Americans, European Americans, Jewish Americans, Latino/Latina/Latine Americans, Multiracial Americans, and Native Americans, among others, with respect to their cultures, traditions, social treatment, and lived experiences. Scholarly journals, magazines, newspapers, historical documents, and biographies are complemented by primary sources, such as speeches and interviews. Complete with robust collections of videos and e-books, Ethnic Diversity Source creates a dynamic research experience for students and researchers.
- LGBTQ+ Source This link opens in a new window LGBTQ+ Source contains all of the content available in LGBT Life as well as full text for more than 140 of the most important and historically significant LGBTQ+ journals, magazines and regional newspapers, plus full text for 150 monographs/books. It includes both scholarly and popular publications covering lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer issues, with comprehensive indexing and abstract coverage as well as a specialized LGBTQ+ Thesaurus containing over 10,000 terms.
- Ralph J. Bunche Oral Histories Collection on the Civil Rights Movement This link opens in a new window The Ralph J. Bunche Oral History Collection from the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center is a unique resource for the study of the era of the American civil rights movement. Included here are transcriptions of more than 500 interviews with those who made history in the struggles for voting rights, against discrimination in housing, for the desegregation of the schools, to expose racism in hiring, in defiance of police brutality, and to address poverty in the African American communities.