Frequenters of the Chancellor’s Complex may have noticed the
arrival of a new neighbor last month — a fresh-faced woman sporting Sun Tzu’s
The Art of War as a metaphor for the task she was hired to complete. According
to the campus’ newest associate vice chancellor, Sandra Daley, her office is
gearing up for a long-awaited war: one to change the impoverished state of
diversity at UCSD.
Daley recently succeeded theater professor Jorge Huerta as
associate vice chancellor and chief diversity officer at UCSD, a dual position
created by Chancellor Marye Anne Fox according to the recommendations of the
Chancellor’s Diversity Council and the Senate-Administration Task Force on
Underrepresented Faculty.
As chief diversity officer, a position first held by UC
President Robert C. Dynes while he was UCSD’s chancellor, Daley will act as the
primary link between the campus community and its administration by gathering
information for Fox regarding the state of campus diversity.
To illustrate the goals of her new position, Daley carries
around The Art of War, which she received in graduate school. She said she
finds it a fitting itinerary for her position because she sees any change to
the status quo as an act of war.
“When we talk about equity, we are at war,” Daley said.
“Society is a system and all systems seek to be at rest … So it resists
change because that is not a state of rest. So if you want change, you have to
go to war.”
Daley relocated to her new post from UCSD’s
of
assistant dean of diversity and community partnerships, as well as a professor
of pediatrics.
“I stopped seeing patients and transferred that excitement
and commitment to students,” she said.
After only one month in office, Daley said she is just
beginning to explore diversity as it stands at UCSD. Although she does not yet
have any concrete goals, Daley plans to take a community-based approach to
diversity issues, which she calls her trademark strategy.
“We need diversity of thought,” Daley said. “We need
diversity of action. We need diversity of experiences. And I think UCSD as a
place is paying attention to it. We’re speaking; the students are speaking.”
Daley highlighted UCSD’s progress in this field, offering
student-supported scholarships aimed at promoting diversity such as the I
Pledge Student Scholarship. In addition, the campus has many organizations and
committees designed to promote tolerance, she said.
Daley said her overarching goal is to create an inclusive
atmosphere for all potential members of the UCSD community. She believes that
the power to attract people comes from welcoming them into their new positions
as students, faculty and staff members.
A report recently released by the
for African American Studies at UCLA criticized UCSD for its low enrollment of
black students due to admissions policies that exclude students’ educational
backgrounds.
However, the number of black students admitted to the campus
has been rising over the past nine years. For the entering class of 2011, 350
black students were admitted. In addition, the percentage of underrepresented
ethnic minorities was at its highest in 10 years, comprising 16.1 percent of
admitted students.
Daley said percentages of one ethnicity or another on campus
are not her primary concern.
“To create a diverse group of people … you don’t need a
bunch of people who look like me or think like me,” Daley said. “All you need
is enough diversity to feel like there is room for me.”
Her next step is to engage UCSD community members to find
out what students feel they need for their education and how to best facilitate
the work of the staff and faculty. Daley said she believes community members
already know the problems and the best way to approach them.
“When you enter a community, just be quiet and listen,”
Daley said. “You shut up and listen to the problems. You shut up and listen to
the solutions. Then you ask, ‘What resources do I have to help?’”
