Read the full article by Lauren Kirschman on the UW News website. Start reading below…
In “Revolution to Evolution: The Story of the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity at the University of Washington,” Emile Pitre chronicles the story of OMA&D from its 1968 inception to its current status as a model for university programs.
OMA&D owes its creation to student-led activism, which was fueled by the national movement to address structural and cultural racism in institutions. In 1968, members of the Black Student Union and their supporters occupied the office of then-UW President Charles E. Odegaard. They demanded an increase in minority student enrollment, more minority faculty, staff and administrators and the establishment of a program in Black studies.
Their demands led to the creation of the Special Education Program, which in 1970 was renamed the Office of Minority Affairs and became the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity in 2007.
At the time, Pitre was a UW graduate student and founding member of the Black Student Union. He later served for 21 years as chemistry instructor and 13 years as director of OMA&D’s instructional center. Pitre was promoted to associate vice president for minority affairs in 2004, a position he held until his retirement in 2014.
UW News sat down with Pitre to discuss his book and the past, present and future of OMA&D.
Their demands led to the creation of the Special Education Program, which in 1970 was renamed the Office of Minority Affairs and became the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity in 2007.
At the time, Pitre was a UW graduate student and founding member of the Black Student Union. He later served for 21 years as chemistry instructor and 13 years as director of OMA&D’s instructional center. Pitre was promoted to associate vice president for minority affairs in 2004, a position he held until his retirement in 2014.
UW News sat down with Pitre to discuss his book and the past, present and future of OMA&D.
What motivated you to write this book?
EP: In 2008, I was a guest on a radio show with Sheila Edwards Lange, the former vice president and vice provost for minority affairs & diversity at the UW. She’s now the chancellor at the UW Tacoma. It was the 40th anniversary of the establishment of OMA&D and people were giving their opinions on the history. She thought we needed to write a book so that we could tell our own story.
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