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Morgan Named Coordinator for Belonging

Communication • 2022

Bluefield College has named Sherelle Morgan its first coordinator for belonging.

“As coordinator for belonging, I am tasked with two main objectives: 1) to promote a campus culture that minimizes bias and recognizes and addresses systemic inequities, and 2) to provide leadership on diversity, equity and inclusion matters in all areas of campus life,” Morgan said.

Morgan is no stranger to promoting diversity and inclusion. Before coming to Bluefield College, she developed a diversity program and served as a diversity officer for her previous employer. She oversaw diversity training for the company, facilitated its Diversity Council, launched affinity groups, and analyzed recruitment. She also managed a team of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) trainers that reached approximately 4,000 employees.

Morgan joined the Bluefield College community in 2015 to work with recruiting online students. Outside of her work from 2017 to 2019, she served as advisor to the BC Black Student Alliance. She also has led or assisted with planning events for Black History Month for five years. Additionally, Morgan has trained student leaders in diversity, equity and inclusion.

“In the diversity, equity and inclusion profession, a relatively new term has emerged called ‘belonging.’ Simply put, belonging refers to an individual sense of acceptance or the feeling of being part of something,” Morgan explained. “Think of that soul-crushing feeling of not belonging and imagine dealing with it every day on campus, in the classroom, on the court/field, or at work. Diversity (our uniqueness) is a fact; inclusion is a choice, but belonging is a feeling driven by a culture that we must intentionally create.”

As the coordinator for belonging, Morgan described the following goals:

1. To establish an intake process by which students, faculty and staff can report and receive support for incidences of bias, inequity, or exclusion

2. To promote and raise awareness by providing an ongoing platform for students, faculty and staff to share and explore their experiences

3. To facilitate DEI training and education opportunities for students, faculty, staff and college leadership

4. To work closely with our campus community to promote a culture of belonging

5. To work with our faculty to implement diversity-based curriculum and embrace inclusive teaching methods and practices.

The coordinator for belonging position was created in response to last semester’s diversity audit, made possible through Credo and the Appalachian College Association’s Project Promise initiative.

“Project Promise is a grant-funded initiative to promote inclusivity and strengthen education at Appalachian colleges and universities,” Morgan said. “The diversity audit examined six different areas that impact the campus climate, including mission, faculty support, curriculum, staff support, student support, and leadership.”

Students, faculty, staff and administrative leadership were involved in the completion of the audit, which disclosed some of Bluefield College’s strengths and shortcomings related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

President David Olive stated, “[T]he audit identified five areas for improvement or questions to ask, which included: 1) a formal individual, office or formal committee charged with coordinating and advancing campus-wide diversity initiatives, 2) do faculty include student learning outcomes focusing on diversity as a part of their typical assessment practices, 3) how are DEI initiatives tracked and measured, 4) why does the college track and report diversity-related data, and 5) how many academic departments use diversity to shape course content, project design and instruction?”

To begin addressing its shortcomings and promote a culture of belonging, Bluefield College created the coordinator for belonging position.

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