AIME Mission Statement
The Department of English’s Access, Inclusion, Marginalization, and Equity committee (AIME) was established to proactively seek out ways to enact values of equity and inclusion in the Department of English. We recognize that unexamined power dynamics can perpetuate explicit and implicit forms of racism, sexism, ableism, and homophobia in the department and beyond. AIME acknowledges how these aforementioned issues disproportionately affect members of marginalized groups within the department, which can create a hostile work environment that negatively impacts the overall department climate as well as our ability to fulfill our teaching, research, and service missions.
Our charge is to advise department leadership on how best to address patterns of discrimination, thereby protecting vulnerable populations within the department and creating a robust academic community. The committee intends to accomplish this goal by providing concrete strategies and plans of support during certain challenging times. These recommendations will aim to forward the department’s commitment to:
- Retaining Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) among our faculty, staff, and students;
- Creating an environment in which graduate student input is regularly sought, and students can voice concerns without fear of retaliation;
- Applying equitable and transparent hiring practices that recognize the value of diversity
- Ensuring teaching and service opportunities maintain equitable labor distributions across department demographics;
- Encouraging inclusive teaching practices;
- Realizing our potential as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and American Indian and Alaskan Native Serving Institution (AIANSI), by addressing such issues as underrepresentation of employees and students of color and/or disadvantaged backgrounds, as well as developing courses and curricula aligned with HSI and AIANSI objectives.
For more information please email the AIME committee at mlempert@arizona.edu.