Inclusion Advocates

Established in 2020 and implemented in 2021, TU’s Inclusion Advocate (IA) program enhances equity, validity, diversity, and representation in university faculty hiring.

IAs are TU tenured faculty and permanent status librarians who are trained as search and selection process advisors. Their preparation includes a 16-hour Seminar and on-going education addressing current research and best practices about implicit bias, diversity, representation, and the ever-changing legal landscape in hiring, inclusive employment principles, and practical strategies for each stage of the search process. IAs are consistently on the cutting edge of effective advocacy of de-biasing the search process.

The Office of the Provost has committed to ensuring that a designated Inclusion Advocate sit on tenured, tenure track faculty and permanent librarian search committees.

Role and Responsibilities

Per the TU Tenured, Tenure-Track, Faculty and Permanent Status Librarian Hiring Procedures:

  • The role of the IA is to serve on the search committee as a resource to promote inclusive and equitable screening and evaluation of applicants.
  • The IA shall ensure that all voices are heard during the search process, and if necessary, address discriminatory behavior within the search process with support of the committee chair, department chairperson, dean, Assistant Provost for Diversity & Inclusion, and Office of Inclusion and Institutional Equity.
  • The IA is expected to participate in the same aspects of the search as other members of the search committee throughout the process.

The IA Seminar

All Inclusion Advocates take part in an in-depth Seminar in preparation for their role. The content of the IA Seminar includes major topics such as:

  • Demographics, Multiple Identities, & Intersectionality
  • The Creation of Inclusion Advocates
  • The Role & Expectations of Inclusion Advocates
  • Diversity, Representation, Equity & Inclusion Language
  • TU Hiring Protocols, Policies, Procedures
  • Interrupting Bias in the Faculty Search
  • Cognitive Errors and Case Scenarios
  • Best Practices in Outreach, Recruitment, and Interviewing
  • Best Practices in Multicultural Interviewing
  • Mediation Techniques, Dialogue, Conflict Resolution
  • Change Management

The IA Seminar will be provided at least once every other year as a collaboration between the Office of the Provost and OIIE.

Inclusion Advocates 

College
Inclusion Advocate 
CBE

Shantanu Bagchi, Associate Professor, Department of Economics

Seth Gitter, Professor, Department of Economics

Melissa Groves, Associate Professor, Department of Economics

Parolia Neeraj, Associate Professor, Department of Business Analytics and Technology Management

Douglas Sanford, Professor, Department of Management

Yongchen Zhao, Associate Professor, Department of Economics

CHP

Tara Blackshear, Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology

Devon Dobrosielski, Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology

Karla Kubitz, Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology

Mary Lashley, Professor, Department of Nursing

Hyunjeong Park, Associate Professor, Department of Nursing

Kaitlyn Wilson, Associate Professor, Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology

Jenna Yeager, Associate Professor, Department of Occupational Therapy and Occupational Science

CLA

Sharon Jones-Eversley, Associate Professor, Department of Family Science

Jason, Freeman, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology

Darnell Morris-Compton, Associate Professor, Department of Family Science

Salvatore Pappalardo, Associate Professor, Department of English

Paporn “Bee” Thebpanya, Associate Professor, Department of Geography &
Environmental Planning

Bethany Willis Hepp, Associate Professor, Department of Family Science

COE

Todd Kenreich, Professor, Department of Secondary & Middle School
Education

Cole Reilly, Associate Professor, Elementary Education  

Rebecca Shargel, Educational Technology and Literature 

Marcia Vandiver, Associate Professor, Elementary Education  

Ocie Watson-Thompson, Early Childhood Education 

COFAC

Michael Angelella, Professor, Department of Electronic Media & Film 

Amanda Burnham, Professor, Art, Design, History and Education 

Michaela Frischherz, Associate Professor, Department of Communication Studies  

Joseph Kraemer, Associate Professor, Department of Electronic Media & 
Film  

Tavia La Follette, Associate Professor, Theatre Arts 

Soo Rhee, Associate Professor, Mass Communication 

Steven Satta, Professor, Theatre Arts 

Vincent Thomas, Professor, Department of Dance  

FCSM

Joyram Chakraborty, Associate Professor, Department of Computer & Information Sciences

Josh Dehlinger, Professor, Department of Computer & Information Sciences

Clare Muhoro, Professor, Department of Chemistry

Faith Weeks, Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences

Cindy Zeller, Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry

Cook Libraries

Rick Davis, Copyright and Scholarly Communications Librarian

Joyce Garczynski, Assistant University Librarian for Communication & Digital Scholarship

Shana Gass, Head of Research Services

Bill Helman, Head of Library Information Technology

Ashley Todd-Diaz, Assistant University Librarian for Special Collections and University Archives

What Inclusion Advocates are Saying...

Dr. Joe Kraemer, Associate Professor, Electronic Media & Film
Dr. Joe Kramer, Associate Professor, Electronic & Media Film

“The Inclusion Advocate training was eye opening for me as a faculty member of Towson University and as a member and chair of several past faculty search committees. It drove home the point of how and why we need to do better at advancing our institution's mission of fostering an inclusive, diverse, and equitable campus for all, from students to employees. With this training, I feel more confident and well-equipped to advocate for inclusive practices throughout the search committee process.”


 Dr. Mary Lashley, Professor, Department of Nursing
Dr, Mary Lashley, Professor, Department of Nursing

"Through the IA program, I gained insight into the key ingredients needed to promote a respectful and diverse workplace that values and supports the inherent worth and dignity of each person. I also received valuable insight on the structures and processes needed for hiring, recruiting, and retaining a diverse and inclusive workforce."


 Vincent Thomas, Professor, Department of Dance
Vincent Thomas, MFA, Professor, Department of Dance

“Inclusion is an embodied practice not a switch to flip on or a box to check. It is how we see, hear, taste, smell, feel, which informs how we think.”


Questions? Email Dr. Iona Ringgold, Assistant Provost for Diversity & Inclusion at