Reproducing the "white public space" in anthropology faculty searches.

Several faculty examined our classroom practices and curriculum, a second group revised our website and public communication, and others coordinated with other units on campus, including the Faculty Senate, which issued a report and created a standing social justice committee, and the faculty union, whose discussions with BIPOC faculty led to workshops on personnel policies. Search committees alone cannot improve disparities in faculty representation; rather, colleges and universities must commit to enacting policies and practices that aid in the dismantling of institutional barriers that impede the hiring and retention of BIPOC faculty. The issue is that departments and faculty have not really "bought into" the institutional call for diversity through hiring BIPOC faculty and are dismissive of the fact that our diverse student population deserves a diverse faculty. The new university administration recognized the pressing need to diversify its faculty, admitting that this was important for students and for the few overworked and overburdened BIPOC faculty already on campus. [Extracted from the article]