Fayetteville State chancellor outlines a vision for diversity, and the University of North Carolina Press presents volumes on Black gays in the South and the post-Emancipation era.
In keeping with the focus on higher education in North Carolina for this issue, Diverse Bookshelf looks at new academic books with a connection to the state, one from a Fayetteville State University administrator and two from the University of North Carolina Press.
Driving Change Through Diversity and Globalization: Transformative Leadership in the Academy, by James A. Anderson, Stylus Publishing, (November 2007), ISBN-10: 1579220983, ISBN-13: 978- 1579220983, pp. 208.
It is not enough for institutions of higher education to espouse or even achieve diversity if they do not figure out how that sometimesamorphous goal fits into the mission to teach and if they do not document their success at it, warns Dr. JamesA. Anderson in this book. Anderson became chancellor of Fayetteville State University earlier this year, returning to the state where he had spent 11 years as a vice provost at North Carolina State University. His recent work has been in institutional assessment and diversity, lending authority to his message that diversity by the numbers should not become the end but rather the means for teaching all students to navigate in amulticultural society and prosper in a globalmarketplace.
“How do we know that the learning and social environment of a campus prepares its students to challenge stereotypes, or become good citizens in a pluralistic society, or develop the necessary skills and competencies to work effectively with colleagues from diverse backgrounds?”Anderson asks. If institutions cannot answer that, he notes, “diversity detractors and nonsupporters can capitalize on environments that are rifewith vague definitions andmessages.”
“Even the most committed leaders can unknowingly create the conditions that limit the progress and implementation of diversity goals,”Anderson continues.
