Search Begins for Next RRI Chair
To bring TCU’s Race & Reconciliation Initiative (RRI) into its second phase, the university is preparing for its next transformational leader. The Office of the Provost and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion are seeking applications for the position of chair with an initial appointment of two years. The chair of the Race & Reconciliation Initiative will work closely with the provost and report directly to the director of diversity and inclusion.
“We are extremely proud of the work that the RRI taskforce has done so far and we’re excited about this next chapter,” said Aisha Torrey-Sawyer, director of diversity inclusion initiatives. “The next stage of RRI’s evolution will concentrate on the research mission, enabling other units on campus to continue to engage our campus on topics of race and our history.”
In July 2020, the TCU Board of Trustees announced an initiative to study TCU’s experiences with racism, slavery and the Confederacy in an effort to understand and acknowledge TCU’s complex history. RRI embarked upon a thoughtful academic examination of TCU’s nearly 150 years, uncovering documents and artifacts and bringing awareness throughout campus. RRI has now expanded to a five-year project, enabling the work to include Indigenous, Native American and Latinx histories with TCU.
“The support of TCU to expand this project, I am confident, will prove to be incredibly valuable to our institution,” Torrey-Sawyer said. “The research focus moving forward will take an intersectional approach, examining all ethnic and racial identities and experiences with TCU over its 150-year history. We will be both looking back and looking forward as we approach this 150th year milestone.”
She said she would be remiss to not thank founding chair Frederick Gooding Jr., Dr. Ronald E. Moore Honors Professor of Humanities, for his contributions.
“We are more than grateful for Dr. Gooding’s tireless work and incredible leadership,” she said. “He has left big shoes to fill and has positioned us well for expanding on our work and seeing this through.”
Gooding said that RRI simply set out to create a space and place for reconciliation.
“With RRI, we built a brand whereby it is OK for us to embrace our past and not erase it,” he said. “We also learned that we have to come together to move forward together. It will be truly exciting to see the next round of leadership continue to build a foundation for reconciliation.”
The RRI chair is responsible for leading the research and community engagement provided by RRI. They provide leadership and strategic vision, represent the interests of RRI across units at TCU and coordinate and collaborate with various units in Academic Affairs and Student Affairs.
Candidates must hold a full-time permanent faculty appointment and must have demonstrated expertise in historical research or a closely related discipline. The nine-month, 50% administrative appointment, with additional duties during the summer, carries a start date of Aug. 15, 2022.
