SMC’s Response to the “Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping”

Dear SMC Community,

We are alarmed and dismayed by the executive order issued on September 22, signed by President Donald J. Trump. This Order seeks to ban diversity and inclusion training, including discussions of concepts such as white privilege, critical race theory, and unconscious bias in federally funded programs. We object to this egregious action. 

Saint Mary’s is deeply committed to offering our students a transformative education that develops future leaders instilled with Lasallian values and ready to contribute to our global society. We see our diversity as a community as our strength. 

Based on our core principles of respect for all persons, inclusive community, and social justice, SMC strives to eliminate inequities in educational access and promote positive educational outcomes for students from all backgrounds. The Executive Order is inconsistent with these aims and jeopardizes SMC’s federally-funded initiatives such as the High Potential (HP) program and STEM Center. The HP program supports first-generation and low-income students, offering success coaching and peer-mentoring from just prior to the first year of college through the completion of their baccalaureate degrees. HP students are invited to participate in workshops and skill development programming that support their academic, professional, and personal growth. The program offers students need-based financial grants to facilitate their overall success while at SMC. The STEM Center offers tutoring to all Saint Mary’s students who need support in science-related courses. Students participating in these SMC programs engage in open, critical dialogue about structural barriers to inclusivity as they work to become global citizens who positively impact the world.

We are working with students, faculty, and staff representatives from different cultural, social, and economic backgrounds to cultivate a campus climate that enables all of us to feel that we belong in this community. In October, we are relaunching Gaels Uniting for Inclusion and Diversity Through Education (GUIDE) workshops, and the College Committee on Inclusive Excellence (CCIE) will be holding fall community forums and listening sessions. These initiatives are among the College’s many programs that seek to ensure that everyone has a voice as we work collectively to promote inclusion, equity, and justice.

This Executive Order is a direct assault on these programs and undermines the valuable work at Saint Mary’s. However, we will stand strong as a community and fight, both by challenging the order and its implementation and, if necessary, pushing forward with our work by other means.

Sincerely,

College Leadership,

James A. Donahue, President
Margaret Kasimatis, Interim Executive Vice President

Jane Camarillo, Vice Provost for Student Life
Carolyn Otis Catanzaro, Interim Vice President for Advancement
Susan Collins, Vice President for Finance and Administration
Corey Cook, Vice Provost for Academic Programs and Planning
Michael Matoso, Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics
William Mullen, Vice Provost for Enrollment and Communications
Megan Mustain, Acting Chief Academic Officer, Vice Provost for Student Academics and Dean of the Core
Frances Sweeney, Vice President for Mission

Francisco A Chavez, Interim Chief Technology Officer
Elizabeth Davis, Dean, School of Economics and Business Administration
Carol Ann Gittens, Dean, Kalmanowitz School of Education
Sheila Hassell Hughes, Dean, School of Liberal Arts
Jennifer Heung, Past Chair, Academic Senate
Dana Lawton, Chair, Academic Senate
Kathy Littles, Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Senior Diversity Officer
Lauren MacDonald, Dean, Library and Academic Resources
Roy Wensley, Dean, School of Science