Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer Jabbar R. Bennett, Ph.D. Selected to National Advisory Board on Racial Equity in Higher Education

March 30, 2021 - Henry Mochida

On March 30, the Association of American Universities announced that Michigan State University’s Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer Jabbar R. Bennett, Ph.D. has been selected to serve on the Advisory Board on Racial Equity in Higher Education.  

The announcement was made in AAU’s president’s report email. Bennett will serve as one of 25 campus leaders who were identified as bringing “tremendous expertise and experience.” The advisory board will be co-chaired by University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel, Rutgers University President Jonathan Holloway and University of Rochester President Sarah Mangelsdorf.  

The scope of the initiative will focus on undergraduate education and recruitment, graduate student and faculty recruitment, faculty advancement and tenure, and campus infrastructure and climate. Bennett will sit on the Campus Infrastructure and Climate sub-group with five executive leaders from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Yale University, University of Southern California, Tulane University and Boston University. 

“I welcome the opportunity to serve on this board,” said Bennett. “These and other efforts will help to advance President Stanley’s commitment and situate MSU as a national leader in diversity, equity and inclusion.” 

According to the announcement, “The group will discuss and develop a collective strategy to assist AAU member institutions as they work to address issues of racial inequity on campus and will examine structural barriers to access and success in higher education.”