The University’s Racial Equity Task Force was created by President Jim Ryan June 3 with the goal of developing a concrete list of actions for the University to take to further racial equity efforts on Grounds.
The students argue that the incorporation of anti-racist teachings into University-wide curriculum requirements is “fundamental to transforming the overall embodiment of the University’s values.”
A group of predominantly Black student activists submitted a list of demands June 12 to the University's racial equity task force recently formed by President Ryan.
Federal regulations require on an annual basis that “rebates and discounts obtained when making these purchases must be accounted for and subtracted from claims made by a university against Federal Award funds.”
At the University, only 108 faculty members are Black — comprising just 3.7 percent of the University’s 2,920-person faculty. People of color, more broadly, make up 26 percent of tenure-track or tenured professors.
Addressed to University administration, Title IX, and the Office of Equal Opportunity and Civil Rights, the list of demands calls for “immediate, structural, and transformative change of the University of Virginia’s policies and resource allocation for sexual violence, sexual harassment, and intimate-partner violence prevention and support services.”
The University also calls on students and organizations to adhere to student self-governance in order to hold one another accountable for public health guidelines.
The decision comes after years of advocacy by undocumented students and allies who have pushed the University to matriculate undocumented students and provide financial aid and support.
![The sabre handles included in both designs have been changed to remove the curves that were previously added to “[mimic] the design of the serpentine walls.”](https://snworksceo.imgix.net/cav/542a095e-6ea7-423d-aec2-8503a94257c7.sized-1000x1000.png?w=1000&ar=4%3A3&fit=crop&crop=faces&facepad=3&auto=format)
Virginia athletics director Carla Williams said in a statement that she was not previously aware of the history behind the serpentine walls when the logos were first announced April 24.
Board members discussed the creation of a required class on racial equity — an idea first proposed by the Black Student Alliance after white supremacists rallied on Grounds and in Charlottesville on Aug. 11 and 12, 2017 and that has been repeatedly demanded since.
“Although the thinking on this change predates the current moment of civil unrest around issues of discrimination against African Americans, the timing of this announcement could not be more appropriate," said Ridley's grandchildren —Alyssa, Carl and Mark Scheunemann.
The University noted that it may extend the practice of test-optional admissions in the future and will make a decision on the matter next spring.
The kits will consist of a 14-by-18-inch drawstring bag, two cloth face masks, two 2-ounce containers of hand sanitizer and a touch tool that can be used to pull on door handles and activate keypads.
In response to Ryan's initial statement, the Black Student Alliance at U.Va. issued a list of demands from "students seeking liberation from the past."
Several community members expressed dissatisfaction and said Ryan's statement did not adequately address the underlying causes of ongoing national protests.
The application serves as “a streamlined process to evaluate applications and distribute funds to eligible students as expeditiously as possible” according to Hester.
In efforts to prevent outbreaks of COVID-19 in the University community, the University is developing protocols for testing, tracing and isolating those who are COVID-19 positive.
The survey's results are just one factor in the Fall 2020 Committee's decision making process which aims to provide a recommendation to University administration on the fall 2020 semester by mid-June
The new law leaves it up to the schools themselves to matriculate and provide support for undocumented students when they matriculate at any given Virginia college or university.
Dozens of universities have already announced that they will require students to be vaccinated for the fall semester, including 10 schools in Virginia.
