Diversity and Inclusion

We believe an environment of diversity and respect is critical to achieve and sustain excellence in learning, teaching, and research.

Further, we recognize that the responsibility for our values lies with us all within the department: the leadership, faculty, staff, and students. As such, we will hold ourselves to a high standard of excellence and will not stand for the discrimination and harassment of any group or individual. To achieve this, we will:

• Foster and maintain an environment of respect and inclusion.
• Ensure equal opportunities for all students, including underrepresented students, and to provide resources to ensure a quality learning environment.
• Hold students, staff, and faculty accountable according to Penn State policies and the Student Code of Conduct.

Black Lives Matter

June 2020

The last few weeks we have seen protests across the country and here in State College in response to continued violence faced by Black communities. The awful deaths of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd are a reflection of the ongoing costs of systemic racism faced by Black Americans. We as a department have a duty to reflect on the impact this violence has in the day-to-day lives of our colleagues and students in this department, the university, and society at large. We also must reflect on the ways that historic and current discrimination have impacted our own professions and university systems. Now is a time as a department to affirm the message of protests here in State College and across the country, that we believe Black Lives Matter. We must be committed to addressing discrimination where it occurs and strive to be an inclusive and equitable place of work. We see you. We hear you. The continued impacts of racism on the lives of Black Americans are unacceptable.

But words are not enough. It is incumbent upon us in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, and the larger Penn State community, to live and act on a commitment to racial equity, both personally and professionally, today and moving forward. Our department strives to be a community of people dedicated to respecting and supporting all of our students, staff, and faculty. Accomplishing this requires being proactive, reflective, empathetic, and vigilant. Together we must stand against injustice and continue to move in a direction towards equity for all, to foster these values in our education, service, and research missions, and to hold each other up as we move forward.

Sincerely,

David Eissenstat, Professor, Interim Department Head (July 2019–December 2020)

ESM Diversity Committee (David Miller, Melissa Kreye, Allyson Muth, Suzanne Fleishman, Jesse Kreye, Julian Avery, Jon Duncan, Bill Elmendorf, Beth Boyer, Laura Leites)

Penn State Department of Ecosystem Science and Management

Reporting Incidents

Students who believe they have experienced or observed a hate crime, an act of intolerance, discrimination, or harassment that occurs at Penn State are urged to report these incidents as outlined on the University's Report Bias web page. Incidents of gender-based discrimination, abuse, or harassment should be reported.

Additional Resources

• Penn State policy
• Student Code of Conduct