July 2, 2019

Dear Old Dominion Community:

After nearly 25 years of service to Old Dominion University, Assistant Vice President for Institutional Equity and Diversity ReNeé S. Dunman has told me she will retire effective June 30, 2020.

While I will deeply miss ReNeé as a friend and colleague, I have agreed to her request that she devote her final year to targeted and more comprehensive initiatives that will enhance our equity and diversity efforts.

During that time, Ariana Wright, the director of equity, will assume the day-to-day leadership of the office.

With this announcement, the Office of Equity and Diversity will now report to Vice President of Human Resources September Sanderlin, while remaining a separate unit from the Department of Human Resources. I know Vice President Sanderlin shares our strong, university-wide commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.

The Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity has experienced many noteworthy accomplishments under the direction of ReNeé, who served for two terms as president of the American Association for Access, Equity and Diversity.

Among the highlights, the office:

• Established and oversaw the President's Task Force for Inclusive Excellence.
  
• Helped facilitate the University's success in receiving national and local diversity awards - USA Today Best Places to Work (2014 and 2016), Hampton Roads Employer Diversity and Inclusion (2015), Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (2017), and Forbes Magazine Best Employers for Diversity (2019).
  
• Established the Diversity Champion Award and renamed it the John R. Broderick Award to recognize significant contributions for faculty, staff and students in the areas of diversity and inclusion.
  
• Created the Pathway Retention Award to promote persistence of underrepresented students.
  
• Established three employee resource groups: Hispanic Latino Employee Association, Employees with Disabilities Association and the LGBTQIA Association.
  
• Created a forum for challenging dialogue titled CommUNITY Conversations.
  

I appreciate the input and support that AVP Dunman and Vice President Sanderlin have provided in preparing for this transition. I will provide more information on the search for the Assistant Vice President for Institutional Equity and Diversity as we approach the time for the recruitment.

Sincerely,

John R. Broderick

President