Student leaders, 2015
Members of MIT’s Black Students’ Union (BSU) and the Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA), Lobby 7, December 2015. Left to right: Ade Samuel '18, Ellen Rice Staten MBA '16, Rasheed Auguste '17, Tiera Guinn '17, Alberto Hernández '17, and Isaiah Borne '18.
On December 1, 2015, student leaders from the [Black Students’ Union (BSU) and the Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA)] presented recommendations from each group to MIT’s Academic Council, which consists of the Institute’s senior leadership and is chaired by President L. Rafael Reif.
Both sets of recommendations — one geared toward the undergraduate experience, the other focused on graduate students — aim to cultivate and support a racially diverse MIT community, while also underscoring the importance of ensuring the comfort and sense of well-being of all members of the MIT community.
“MIT has had a long history of specifically addressing racial bias,” says Rasheed Auguste '17, co-chair of the BSU, chair of the BSU’s political action committee, and a junior in the Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering. “We have made great strides as a university, but now is the time to set the bar for the next 10 years.”
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[MIT Vice President Kirk Kolenbrander:] “We have a shared goal of advancing a respectful community that supports everyone’s success at MIT, and we recognize that there is work to be done to reach this ideal. Immediately, we will improve how we conduct surveys and student orientation, and we look forward to identifying opportunities for improvements in financial aid, sharing of statistical data, and accountability for progress in key areas.”
"Black student leaders present recommendations for a more inclusive MIT," MIT News, 9 December 2015