IU Bloomington Provost Professor Pamela Braboy Jackson will assume the position of IU's first associate vice president for faculty and belonging, the university announced in a press release May 10.
Jackson will take on her role June 1. She will join the senior leadership team within the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Multicultural Affairs, as part of IU's seven-year Presidential Diversity Hiring Initiative. In her position, Jackson will provide leadership in recruiting and retaining underrepresented faculty members.
The new position was created as a way for the university to take steps toward a more inclusive and diverse institution.
She said in the press release that, while IU has done a lot of work in terms of recruiting and retaining diverse faculty, there is still much more to be done.
"My goal is to work with my colleagues to create a place where faculty members can connect at many different levels and build a sense of community and belonging," Jackson said.
Jackson will focus on diversifying IU faculty and developing programs and workshops surrounding faculty recruitment and retention, according to the press release. She will also form partnerships with minority-serving institutions and organizations.
Jackson was the founding director of the IU Center for Research on Race and Ethnicity in Society. She is currently the director of graduate studies in the College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Sociology and previously taught at Duke University as an assistant professor. She is a two-time IU alumna, graduating from IU with a master's degree in 1989 and a doctorate degree in 1993.
