A culture of inclusivity — both within the classroom and the larger school — is integral to a robust educational experience, and creating diverse programming has been a major focus at the LBJ School over the past five years. Diversifying the school's culture is a necessary but not sufficient condition for promoting diversity, equity and inclusivity — but it has been an important step in supporting ongoing DEI efforts in composition and curriculum.
Through the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy (CSRD) and the Office of Civic Engagement, as well as through programs including the "Policy on Purpose" podcast, we can bring forth a representative and rich array of voices.
Below are steps taken and those charted for the immediate future.
School Level
There has been a sharp focus on diversifying programming in the last five years. A diversification of culture is a necessary but not sufficient condition for promoting diversity, equity and inclusivity. However, it has been an important step to support ongoing composition and curriculum DEI efforts.
The Office of Civic Engagement was established in 2019 to more intentionally engage diverse communities through strategic partnerships and programming. Its purpose is to provide resources and programming that are responsive to the contemporary issues of our diverse communities. In hosting moderated conversations, public lectures and workshops the Office of Civic Engagement bridges the LBJ community to policy leaders in the arena. Programming centers on the voices of diverse leaders as well as policy issues that affect minority and under-served communities.
2021 thus far
- Unpacking the Latino Landscape: 2020 & Beyond — a four-part discussion series focused on Latinos in the United States:
- Latinos and the 2020 Election: A Post-Mortem
- A Deep Dive – Texas & the Latino Electorate
- Is Demography Destiny? Latinos, The Census, & What Lies Ahead
- The Genesis of "Latino" & Its Ongoing Transformation
- The Path to Racial Equity: Practical Steps Toward a More Equal Society — a six-part discussion series focused issues surrounding racial inequity in Austin:
- Education and Understanding
- How Did We Get Here?
- Organizational Diversification, inclusion and advancement
- Economic Justice
- A view from the next generation
- Political influence and involvement
- When Women Win, sponsored by the LBJ Women's Campaign School — a nonpartisan program launched in 2020 that trains women to run for office or manage campaigns. The LBJ WCS seeks to directly address the representational gap in elected positions at every level and across all groups of women.
- A Conversation with Dulce Garcia of Border Angels, sponsored by the Strauss Center for International Security and Law
- MLK Day Virtual Program: The Sword and the Shield, with Dr. Peniel Joseph and Dr. Colette Pierce Burnette, president and CEO of Huston-Tillotson University.
2020
LBJ School Alumni: 2020 Outstanding Alumni Awards, honoring Alejandra Castillo (MPAff '98) and Lauren Rose (MPAff '10)
Center for the Study of Race and Democracy (CSRD):
- How Black Women are Shaping the Future of American Democracy, with Tressie McMillan Cottom, New York Times bestselling author of Thick. And Other Essays (William C. Powers, Jr. Speaker Series)
- The Power of the Vote: Election 2020 and Racial Equity, with Ambassador Ron Kirk
- Pursuing Racial Justice Amid Gentrification in Austin, with Dr. Eric Tang of UT
- Reimagining Public Safety: Justice, Equity, and Anti-Racism, with Kellee Coleman of the City of Austin's Equity Office; Sukyi McMahon, strategic director and board chair of the Austin Justice Coalition; and Chris Harris, director of Texas Appleseed's Criminal Justice Project
- The Search for Racial Justice in Education: Uprooting Structural Racism, with Dr. Pedro Noguera, dean of the USC Rossier School of Education (William C. Powers, Jr. Speaker Series)
- Building the Beloved Community: Allyship During Racial Crisis, with Lawton Cummings and Kelli Mason of Austin-based nonprofit social impact firm Notley
- Justice and Equity in Austin in a Time of National Crisis: A Community Conversation, with Austin Mayor Steve Adler, Austin Council Member Alison Alter, and Austin Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison
- William C. Powers, Jr. Speaker Series keynote: Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr., one of the nation's leading scholars on African American history and literature;
- William C. Powers, Jr. Speaker Series keynote: Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund; and
- William C. Powers, Jr. Speaker Series keynote: Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad, one of the nation's leading scholars on race, democracy, inequality and criminal justice.
Hispanic Heritage Month: Latino Vote 2020, with Latino strategist, New York Times columnist and author Chuck Rocha
- FORUM I: In the Arena: The LBJ Era… to the Present, featuring about the greatest challenges of our time, from economic inequity and racial justice to climate change, with Darren Walker of the Ford Foundation; Carla Hayden of the Library of Congress; Martine Rothblatt of United Therapeutics; Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel of the University of Pennsylvania; Tom Freston of the ONE Campaign; Dr. Rajiv Singh of the Rockefeller Foundation; and Sherrie Westin of Sesame Workshop
- FORUM II: In the Arena: Defining a New Destiny, focused on racial justice, equity and democracy, with Melinda Gates of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase; Dr. Lonnie Bunch of the Smithsonian Institution; Anousheh Ansari of the XPRIZE Foundation; James B. Milliken, chancellor of The University of Texas System; Adm. William McRaven; Stacey Abrams (MPAff '98) of Fair Fight Action; and Pete Buttigieg, former presidential candidate and Mayor of South Bend, Indiana
- Women in Global Leadership, featuring Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO of New America
- Closing the Education Gap with John B. King, president and CEO of The Education Trust
- Protecting the Right to Vote with the Travis & Harris County Clerks, featuring Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir (MPAff '81) and Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins
- Women of Color in the Political Arena, with A'shanti Gholar of the podcast "The Brown Girls Guide to Politics" and president of Emerge America; and Janelle King, co-founder of Speak Georgia
- Rethinking Policing: Police Accreditation & Data Driven Policy Models, with LBJ Assistant Professor Gordon Abner discussed his research on police accreditation and talked with Jameila "Meme" Styles of MEASURE
- American While Black — Reaching the Policy Tipping Point, with Dr. Niambi Carter, associate professor at Howard University
- Jails and Prisons in the Era of COVID-19, with LBJ Senior Lecturer Michele Deitch, Nancy La Vigne (MPAff '91) of the Urban Institute and Dr. Ronald Day of the Fortune Society
Barbara Jordan National Forum
The Office of Civic Engagement has brought the annual Barbara Jordan National Forum under its portfolio to provide this annual commemoration greater reach and organizational resources. In 2020, the LBJ School celebrated the 23rd annual Barbara Jordan National Forum, a student-led weeklong series of events paying tribute to former congresswoman, distinguished public servant and teacher Barbara Jordan, whose legacy as a leader in advocating for social change is integral to the school's history and mission.
2020 Barbara Jordan National Forum events:
- Interactive exhibit of Barbara Jordan's life at the Texas Capitol, displayed by The Barbara Jordan Freedom Foundation
- "Community Outreach with the Weird City Sisters," hosted by Pride Policy Alliance
- "Barbara Jordan's Legacy," with Professors Peniel Joseph and Edwin Dorn, hosted by Policy Alliance for Communities of Color (PACC)
- "The Legacy of Black Land Ownership," featuring Angela Provost and June Provost of Provost Farm, moderated by Austin community leader Terri Broussard Williams
- "We the People" keynote — Jehmu Greene, TV commentator, social justice advocate and former president of Rock the Vote
- Barbara Jordan Day at Barbara Jordan Elementary School, with Austin Mayor Pro Tem Delia Garza
- Diverse Perspectives in Diplomacy and National Strategy, with Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins and LBJ Professors Victoria DeFrancesco Soto, Edwin Dorn and Jeremi Suri
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection: An Update from the Field , with Astrid Dominguez, director of the ACLU Border Rights Center
2019
- Black History Month conversation with Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX) at the LBJ Washington Center
- Royce Brooks, executive director of Annie's List, took part in a Women's History Month keynote conversation, conducted an Annie's List workshop and was featured on an episode of the school's podcast, "Policy on Purpose"
- Hispanic Heritage Month Keynote with Alejandra Castillo, CEO of the YWCA USA
- CSRD: Black Freedom and American Democracy 1619–2019: A 400-Year Struggle, a conference featuring:
- Dr. Ashley Farmer, UT Austin;
- Dr. Ricky Jones, University of Louisville;
- Dr. Nancy MacLean, Duke University;
- Dr. Eric Tang, UT Austin;
- Dr. Michael Ezra, Sonoma State University;
- Dr. Peniel Joseph, UT Austin;
- Dr. Leonard Moore, UT Austin; and
- Dr. George Derek Musgrove, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
- CSRD: Less Separate, Still Unequal: Diversity and Equality in 'Post Civil Rights' America with Dr. Thomas J. Sugrue, NYU
- CSRD: MLK at 90: The Political Thought of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with Dr. Brandon Terry, Harvard University
- CSRD: In 2018, the CSRD Graduate Research Associates presented "Civil Rights in Burnt Orange," an oral history and policy project chronicling UT and the city of Austin's transition from Jim Crow to racial integration. The film was directed by Roosevelt Neely (MPAff '18) — a joint project for UT's Radio-Television-Film advanced documentary class and the CSRD.
Office of Civic Engagement Policy Briefing Series
The LatinX Factor
The Office of Civic Engagement has also partnered with campuswide entities (Center for Mexican American Studies and the UT Hispanic Faculty/Staff Association) to launch an annual Latino summit as part of the commemoration of Hispanic Heritage Month (which was instituted by President Lyndon B. Johnson). The inaugural Latino summit, "The LatinX Factor," focused on understanding the role of identity and its implications for our political and policy landscape. Browse photos from the summit.
Diversity, equity and inclusion-oriented programming at the LBJ School, 2015–20
UT Diversity Resources
- Division of Diversity and Community Engagement
- Institute for Urban Policy Research & Analysis
- UT Provost: College/School Faculty Diversity Data
- Gender and Sexuality Center
- International Student and Scholar Services
- Services for Students with Disabilities
- University Interfaith Council: Student Division