Dear Members of the Campus Community,
Thank you for your participation in the process of creating and recruiting for the new role of vice president for institutional equity and diversity, and for your support of our search committee as they held numerous open forums and sought feedback both on and off campus over the past year.
Our goal has been to identify a visionary and experienced leader to provide a unified, cohesive approach to our diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism goals and practices. Our new vice president is charged with creating an environment of broad inclusion that fosters a more equitable and just community, and embracing the considerable expertise that exists on our campus and in our community—and the deep commitment of everyone engaged in leading, organizing, and coordinating various facets of this critically important work.
It has been a thorough and deliberate process led by our co-chairs, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Uchenna Baker, Dean and Distinguished Professor in the School of Education Amy Ryken, and our search committee, who brought forward four impressive finalists. I recall few search processes that have resulted in so much campus participation and feedback, and have been diligent in reviewing your comments and assessing the best path forward for Puget Sound.
I believe we have found that in Dr. Lorna Hernandez Jarvis, who has accepted my offer and will join Puget Sound effective July 1.
Dr. Hernandez Jarvis is a scholar, faculty member and skilled administrator with experience establishing a similar senior leadership role at Whitworth College, where she is chief diversity officer and associate vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion. She is a cognitive psychologist and educator, with extensive background in intergroup dialogue, who has conducted and published research in acculturation processes and psychological well-being in adolescents, and in the field of semantic development in young children, bilingualism and bilingual education. Her experience includes service as a faculty member and Director of General Education and Interdisciplinary Studies at Hope College; and board service with Latino Americans United for Progress, the Spokane Human Rights Commission, the Tulipanes Latino Art and Film Festival, and the Michigan Ballet Academy.
On a personal note, she has strong familial connections in Tacoma, and brings to us a constellation of intersectional identities as a Latina American with Jewish ancestry, and the daughter of a sociologist/anthropologist who worked closely with Indigenous people to maintain their culture and language. She holds a B.A. in psychology from The University of Akron and an M.A. and Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Kent State University.
Dr. Hernandez Jarvis will work out of Howarth Hall, where she will supervise and be co-located with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Intercultural Engagement and Access Programs.
A press release with more information will be available shortly at pugetsound.edu, and the position profile is still available at pugetsound.edu/vpdi-search for those who would like more information about this new role.
Meanwhile, I would like to thank the search committee for its excellent work in identifying a strong pool of candidates, all of whom clearly had a great deal to offer us, and also all of you who join me in welcoming Dr. Hernandez Jarvis to Puget Sound.
Sincerely,
Isiaah
Isiaah Crawford, Ph.D. | President