BRCC: A College for All
“Blue Ridge Community College's purpose is to empower students to create a better life for themselves by providing a higher education focused on academic rigor, high quality student services and affordable educational programs. In our zeal to achieve that lofty goal, the College strives to ensure that our programs and services benefit everyone in the community. Therefore, working to achieve equity is a critical component of our College mission, as we strive to implement the strategic plan of Virginia’s Community Colleges: Virginia’s Community Colleges will achieve equity in access, learning outcomes, and success for students from every race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic group.” – Dr. John Downey, President, Blue Ridge Community College
Land Acknowledgement:
Blue Ridge Community College’s Weyers Cave campus is located on the ancestral lands of the Monacan, Shawandasse Tula (Shawanwaki/Shawnee), and Manahoac peoples. To see a map of Indigenous territories, treaties, and languages of Native American tribes in Virginia, or around the world, visit: https://native-land.ca/ .
Premise
For the purposes of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Plan, and as part of the Virginia Community College Strategic Plan, the following terms are defined as:
Diversity: “various races and ethnicities…different economic, geographic, and religious backgrounds…age, disabilities, and sexual orientation.”
Equity: “Equity is the existence of an environment in which policies, practices and beliefs are grounded in the principle of fairness and that acknowledges structural racism, gender disparities and systemic poverty, while honoring the diversity of humanity. This environment explicitly prioritizes the success of all students to ensure that they have the necessary resources to fulfill their college and career goals.”
Inclusive environment: “. . .One in which the diverse backgrounds of individuals are leveraged to drive value and results by creating an environment in which employees feel involved, respected, valued and connected."
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Plan for Blue Ridge Community College
Statement from the DEI Plan: "Like the Virginia Community College System Task Force on Diversity (VCCS), in its 2014 report, BRCC recognizes that traditional definitions of diversity have, “centered on race and ethnicity, what some have termed ‘inherent diversity’. Current definitions of diversity are broader and include gender, sexual orientation, economic background, nationality, disability, and other factors. The meaning of ‘inclusion’ is also challenging. While definitions of inclusion are not as prevalent as those for diversity, an inclusive environment can be defined as, “one in which the diverse backgrounds of individuals are leveraged to drive value and results by creating an environment in which employees feel involved, respected,
valued and connected”