Dedicated students, distinguished colleagues and dear friends,

Happy Friday.

“Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”

On Monday, the day before our spring semester starts, we honor the legacy of the great civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who reminded us of the purpose of true education: “Intelligence plus character.”

Character enlightens fundamental human qualities of honesty, courage, loyalty, caring, empathy, fairness, inclusivity, commitment to equality and appreciation for diversity.

As a global institution of higher education, here at S&T, we must be committed to the higher value of embracing diversity, equity and inclusion with a focused attention as never before. To become the exemplar inclusive and diverse university we aspire to be requires us to develop and implement policies, procedures and processes, and most importantly, behaviors, that truly value differences. Differences of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, origin and opinion, religion and ideology. It is only then that we can eliminate marginalization based on identity characteristics and be united in advancing the mission of this wonderful institution. Otherwise, we risk subjugating ourselves to Gandhi’s sin of “knowledge without character,” no matter how “educated” we become.

To our faculty, staff and students, I say that no institutional policy and initiative will be effective in attracting the broadest range of talented faculty, students and staff unless WE, individually and collectively, confront personal and institutional behaviors that adversely impact inclusion and equity of women, underrepresented minorities and the LGBTQ community. In recruiting faculty and staff, in admitting students, and in promoting our people, WE must ensure quality and equity at every stage of our assessment processes. It is then that we all will have a strong sense of belonging and can make great progress on our North Star objectives.

To enhance our already strong culture of equity, inclusivity and diversity, among other measures, we must:

• Identify and address academic and graduation success gaps among traditionally underrepresented students, including women, minorities and the LGBTQ community.
• Identify and address professional growth success gaps among our women and underrepresented faculty and staff.
• Increase the number of women and underrepresented students, faculty and staff.
• Highlight the value and benefits of inclusion, diversity and embracing our differences.
• Ensure enduring commitment to the above four pillars by establishing scholarship, encouraging related research and developing new invited lecture series.

This will not be easy work – but nothing worthwhile ever is. Our leadership team is committed to making the climate at S&T the most welcoming and inclusive it can be. Fortunately, our Board of Trustees committee on Inclusion, Diversity, Excellence and Attainment, or IDEA, is also committed, and is poised to work closely with us to develop a comprehensive set of guidelines and recommendations, based on quality and equity, for us to enhance our practices and processes. Members of our leadership team will then identify roles, responsibilities and success metrics to ensure progress toward our diversity and inclusion objectives.

As we honor Dr. King’s legacy this Monday and begin a new semester on Tuesday, I hope we all take some time to read his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and to reflect on the importance of diversity, inclusion and fair treatment of all.

Warmly,

-Mo.

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Mohammad Dehghani, PhD
Chancellor
mo@mst.edu | 573-341-4116

206 Parker Hall, 300 West 13th Street, Rolla, MO 65409-0910
chancellor.mst.edu