One of the most important issues facing American higher education today is finding ways to ensure a campus environment that is inclusive as well as diverse while promoting freedom of expression and the academic dynamism that depends upon it. Pomona is deeply committed both to free speech, including the right to protest, and to advancing the needs of a diverse, inclusive and rigorous academic community.
For these reasons, the Pomona College Board of Trustees has established a Task Force on Public Dialogue, charged with exploring ways in which Pomona can be a leader in developing a 21st-century-appropriate educational model that combines support for free expression and democratic principles with a commitment to ensuring an equitable and inclusive environment for all.
The Task Force will seek an understanding of the context in which clashes over the values of free expression, inclusiveness and rigorous inquiry occur and explore effective and innovative practices for balancing these three key values within a diverse academic community. Ultimately, the group is tasked with making broad recommendations to the President and the Board concerning ways in which Pomona can continue to build a more inclusive community while modeling engagement and openness in the public sphere.