Diversity and Equity Committee of the Board of Trustees

The Diversity and Equity Committee of the Board of Trustees was formed in 1984. Concerned citizens, representatives of community organizations, faculty and staff were invited to a series of hearings to discuss minority representation at the College.

Shortly after the hearings, this group became a formal committee of the Board of Trustees with a mission to examine minority representation at the College in the following areas: student recruitment/enrollment, faculty/staff recruitment and hires, participation of minority and female vendors, and financial aid/scholarships. Mrs. Redenia Gilliam-Mosee serves as chair. Faculty/staff, student, and community representation were added and the committee was responsible for making recommendations based on its findings to the Board of Trustees and the College President.

Based on the committee’s findings, by academic year 2001-2002, students from three local schools were invited to visit the Mays Landing Campus as part of an Adopt-A-School Program and two $500 scholarships to ACCC were awarded to economically disadvantaged students. More than 100 reconditioned computers were distributed to the schools and other organizations.

In February of 2003 the Minority Affairs mission statement was replaced with a more definitive committee charge that stated:

The charge of the Diversity and Equity Committee, a subcommittee of the Board of Trustees at Atlantic Cape Community College, is to review the recruiting and hiring practices used to fill faculty and staff positions at the college and also to review the college's student recruitment, enrollment, and retention strategies implemented to sustain a diverse student population at ACCC.  The committee should review the effectiveness of these initiatives for comparison with the 1minority demographics of Atlantic and Cape May counties. The committee should also review benchmarks for these initiatives set by other community colleges of similar size and location.  Further, the committee is charged to review academic and student support services provided to retain and promote student success at the college. As requested, the committee should actively participate in and support programs that promote college-wide diversity.

As an outcome of its work, the committee will report its findings to the Board of Trustees.

In February of 2004 the committee donated to the college a symbolic memorial to the civil rights movement in the form of a lighthouse depicting the success of the Underground Railroad. An attached dedication plaque lists names of donors who provide additional scholarship funds for minority students. Diversity programs are ongoing and are open to school classes and members of the community.

Each year during Black History Month, the Diversity and Equity Committee, through its college liaison officer and the dean of students and her staff, schedules a month long celebration of African-American programming, open to schools and the community.

The committee has also started a Celebrities initiative, inviting members of the ACCC’s sending communities to speak to both high school and ACCC students at special events arranged by the Dean of Students.

The Committee spearheaded a summer project for Atlantic City Public School students to develop an interest in attending college by inviting 60 students to attend a free pilot Kids College program at ACCC’s Worthington Atlantic City Center. Board of Trustees members Lynn Baumgardner and Eric Reynolds co-chaired the subcommittee and the program was sponsored for the most part by the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa, Cape Savings Bank, Guthrie Glass and Mirror Company, and Kramer Beverage. The selection process was similar to that previously used in a program for two ACCC adopted schools- Fannie Rittenberg School in Egg Harbor City and Dr. J.P. Cleary Middle School in Buena. Letters were sent to school principals asking them to nominate a limited number of students who fit the selected criteria of need and scholastic citizenship.

Programs and Activities

Best Practices Presentation to the New Jersey Council of County Colleges 2006 Best Practices Conference April 28, 2006.  This presentation is a portion of the programs and activities sponsored by the Diversity and Equity Committee since it's begining.

For additional information, please contact Bobby L. Royal, Sr., College Liaison Officer for the Board of Trustees, Diversity and Equity Committee broyal@atlantic.edu.

1 Minorities are defined as: American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian, Black or African American, Hispanics or Latinos, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islanders, or Other (Under represented populations).