I often take for granted my ability to find safe, secure, and equitable housing here in Hanover, NH. My wife and I live on campus here at Dartmouth College, serving as Live-In Advisors to Triangle House, the undergraduate LGBTQIA+ Living Learning Community. And while housing for students, faculty, and staff is limited and expensive, we don’t typically have to worry about discrimination.
It was a relief and welcome good news to learn that on February 12, 2021 the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it will extend fair housing protections to the LGBTQ community. The Fair Housing Act of 1968—which prohibits discrimination because of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability—will now include protections against discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation.
In this time of great uncertainty, economic fallout and a widening wealth gap, I am sorry that we need laws like the Fair Housing Act, but grateful for every life that mandates like this protect because these laws usually serve the most vulnerable members of our communities.
At Tuck we believe that wise leaders can better the world through business. Sometimes they drive change directly by tackling tough problems head on by developing affordable housing, working for equity in health care or education. Other times they better the world by setting an example and being an inclusive leader, or by bringing people together to learn, problem-solve, educate each other, and grow.
This winter, as MBA students from Tuck, HBS, MIT, Ross, and Wharton collaborate to host a first of its kind conference on allyship scheduled for April 7, 2021, I am humbled by their vision, action-orientation, and conviction. These students from the class of 2021 and 2022 have not let the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on their MBA experience temper their desire to collaborate and drive change. These students inspire us and make us proud to be a part of their journey, even if for just a little while and they remind us that each of us can make a difference where we are and with what we have.
Wishing you well,
Dia
Dia Draper (she/her)
Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Many Voices. One Tuck.
The Tuck PEVC Conference welcomed David Grain T’89 who was interviewed by Dean Matthew Slaughter. The conversation gave me the chance to reflect on the first time I met David and something he shared then that has helped frame how DE&I impacts organizational performance and outcomes for shareholders.
“I firmly believe that inclusive cultural, gender, religious (and political) diversity leads to more thorough analysis, hedges risk, produces better solutions, and optimizes gains.” – David Grain T’89
I am beyond grateful for colleagues like Jim Feuille and Eileen O’Toole of Tuck’s Center for Private Equity and Venture Capital and the PEVC conference leadership team, organizers, guest speakers, and participants from around the world. This year’s conference infused an array of content that did not shy away from and in many cases directly addressed issues of equity in resources and representation in a notoriously exclusive industry. I was inspired by the energy, honesty and the commitment to action that we heard from all sides of the table from founders to funders.
“The number one predictor of your success in today’s borderless world is not your IQ, not your resume (CV), and not even your expertise,” writes social scientist David Livermore in his book The Cultural Intelligence Difference. “It’s your CQ.” Why “Cultural Intelligence” might be the hidden talent that determines your success in our global world.
At a Glance: Women in the C-SuiteHigher representation of women in C-suite level positions results in 34 percent greater returns to shareholders. Fast Company
On February 4, Dartmouth College announced the appointment of its inaugural Senior Vice President/Senior Diversity Officer Shontay Delalue.
With Roderick Milligan T'21 and Lia Parker-Belfer T'22
Save the Date: DEI Summit on April 7
Tuck will join HBS, Kellogg, Ross, and Wharton on Wednesday, April 7 to host an inaugural summit on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Mark your calendars and in the meantime, please email Rod or Lia with questions!
TuckStuff: With your help, we were able to raise $2,565 for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.
If You Knew Me Podcast: We’ve had 500+ downloads since launching the first season of If You Knew Me. We are now starting to develop season two of If You Knew Me and we are still looking for current Tuckies to be on the podcast so please reach out if interested.
Successful MLK Jr. Day programming: A recent Civil Rights Trivia Night raised a total of $3,390 that has been split equally between The Brennan Center for Justice, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and The King Center
History, Heritage, Honor and Upcoming EventsLunar New Year
This month we celebrated Lunar New Year, Year of the Ox, with an in-person movie night hosted by the Asia Business Club (ABC) as well as a virtual dumpling making class hosted by the Hop. Don’t miss Year of the Ox Shadow Puppetry, Friday, February 19 at 3 p.m. ET. Join puppetry artist Jana Zeller with Sandglass Theater to learn the basics of shadow puppetry. Using items from home, you’ll create a shadow box stage and two-dimensional puppets and animate them on a screen.
Black Legacy Month
We continue to celebrate Black Legacy Month throughout February with a number of events and programming. Below is a photo from the recent screening of One Night in Miami, hosted by Black Students Association at Tuck, Tuck Africa, and the Film Club.
Coded Bias Viewing and Fireside Chat with Director Shalini Kantayya
The Center for Digital Strategies, BSAT, and the Dartmouth Women in Technology Project are pleased to welcome filmmaker Shalini Kantayya for a virtual fireside chat about her most recent documentary Coded Bias. Faculty, staff, students (current, admitted and prospective), alumni, and partners are invited to view the film and join the discussion. Learn more and register.
Next50 is a student-led effort to advocate for more diversity in the cases taught at Tuck so that every student at Tuck can see themselves in the business leaders they study. Fifty-one and 55 years ago, the first woman and Black student graduated from Tuck – the start of an important journey to a more diverse and representative student body. Today, with a near-gender parity in our student body and the most diverse class ever, Tuck is more ready than ever before to showcase a diverse set of leadership voices in the curriculum. The Next50 team looks forward to partnering with Tuck students, faculty, and staff to evolve and diversify the cases taught at Tuck—so that students not only see themselves in these examples, but also are better prepared to enter a business world reflective of our diversity. Next50 is being led by Katherine Britt (Chair), Tabitha Bennett, Lindsay Cox, Krishna Desai, Jhanvi Jagad, Monica McGreal, Bridget Morton, and Anna Vaughn. In addition to this committee, more than 40 students contributed to this work in the fall.
As we head into drafting our strategic plan and crafting an inaugural annual report for DEI, we would benefit from having interested members of the Tuck community involved. To that end, I am convening advisory committees and working groups for short-term (through August 2021) partnership. These groups will be responsible for providing insight, ideas, and feedback on our research, drafts, and proposals. I anticipate that the time commitment would be 4-6 hours per month. Faculty, staff, students, partners, and alumni are welcome to indicate your interest via this short form or email tuck.diversity.equity.inclusion@tuck.dartmouth.edu.
Create a profile to learn more about Tuck and receive news and updates
