DBE interviews prominent scholars and leaders from around the country and features them on its website.
This interview is with Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer Vice President of Academic Affairs at Halifax Community College in Weldon, North Carolina.
DBE:Dr. Fulmer, as Vice President of Academic Affairs you have a great deal of responsibility for all things academic including faculty hiring, approval of new course offerings, assessment, retention, diversity, and the list goes on. We’d like to talk to you about diversity and inclusion and similar issues in this interview. Tell us about what you’ve learned to help college leaders make diversity work on campus.
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer: What I’ve learned over the years is to be a very good listener when there are broad responsibilities and many diverse populations to be concerned about. I also make sure I understand the data regarding faculty hiring and student success (recruitment, retention, performance, persistence, etc.) so that I know where there may be gaps or particular opportunities for improvements. So, to place diversity within the context of the institution, I re-focus all attention to students and their success.
By bringing everyone’s attention back to the main purpose of our work, it helps to direct efforts on ensuring that students have what they need to be successful and that there is appropriate and representative staffing. By focusing on students and their success and using the evidence (data) to help drive decisions, it makes the case for developing good, solid and measurable diversity strategies, while strategically integrating diversity within the institution rather than adjunct to its main goals and objectives.
DBE: In light of the constant attacks on affirmative action and diversity and the mixed messages from the U.S. Supreme Court, what advice would you give campuses who are struggling with recruitment and retention issues as it pertains to both students of color and faculty of color?
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer: The advice is similar to my response in the first question. It is important to remain focused on the reason we work in colleges and universities. In my case, I am an administrator at a community college. Our mission is to provide services, programs, education and training that improve the quality of life of our constituents while preparing them for the workforce and/or furthering their educations. While we must be mindful of who is in our classrooms and particularly who is influencing our students, my primary concern is ensuring that we have the best talent we can recruit to teach, while offering the broadest number of people an opportunity to learn. It actually goes back to “doing the right thing” and making sure your institution is providing the best instruction and learning environment it possibly can. Now, while that may sound “pollyannish,” we know that it is not always easy to capture the right balance.
The key is to pursue excellence and go after the best. The second key is to intentionally seek faculty and staff that reflect the population of the communities from which your institution draws. The third key is to create a conducive and welcoming learning environment that people feel valued and respected. And the fourth key is to make sure that services are available for all students, even if there is a need to offer services particular and specifically for individual groups.
Diversity is just not about numbers; it about the relationships and the creation of an environment where excellence is expected and can be achieved. It is about capturing the richness that diversity brings into our lives, communities and our schools and using it to improve the quality of life for everyone. It is important to remember that if we were doing the “right thing” and capitalizing on our diversity, we would not need laws, rules and regulations to guide our actions. It’s in our culture, as a nation, however, to gain as much for the individual as possible. In order to do that, someone has to lose. It’s embedded in the power and control that has been extended to those upon whom this country was founded.
It’s difficult to give up even a small bit of that power and allow members of other groups to share it in a way that extends equality. We continue to struggle with the creation of a just society. Affirmative Action and all the courts cannot regulate treating people right and with respect. So, we have to find a better and more sustainable way to create and maintain diversity as a way of life.
A growing framework for this thought is centered around “inclusive excellence,” which takes us beyond affirmative action and equal opportunity laws, to creating an environment where excellence is inclusive throughout all levels of the institution. Dr. Damon A. Williams, author of “Strategic Diversity Leadership (2013) and one of the authors of “inclusive excellence,” stated that “…diversity is not just the right thing to do, it is the only thing to do.” We still have much work to do!
DBE: Community Colleges typically do a much better job in terms of admitting students of color than 4-year public institutions. In fact students of color are disproportionally represented in Community Colleges? Do you see any cause for concern about this imbalance?
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer: Community and Technical Colleges serve more students than any other higher educational institution. Without these colleges, many students would not have any opportunity for higher education. They are less expensive, but contrary to popular belief, the education is just as rigorous and challenging, if not more so, than our 4-year colleges and universities. We are able to “meet students where they are.” It is my position that the imbalance is OK as long as students of color continue to be successful by starting at a community or technical college.
Currently, the 4-year institutions are begging us for our students. It’s funny that anyone would be concerned about an imbalance, especially since historically, there has always been an imbalance. I think we should not be concerned about that, but much more concerned about not educating those who are poor and/or minority. If we fail to offer education to a rapidly growing minority-majority country, we will be in trouble… and quickly!
DBE: Let’s say you’ve been invited to a national College Presidents meeting to advise them about policies and programs to implement that would help improve the campus climate for students of color on their campuses. What 2 or 3 things would you tell them to do first?
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer: The first thing I would tell them to do is call a meeting with their student leadership with representation from all of their diverse groups, particularly the students of color. Students are often left out of the planning and they are the ones who are most affected. Students can tell us a lot about what they need and what they expect. We should take advantage of their voices much more often than we do.
Secondly, I would advise them to assess their climate based on what the students tell them rather than using a standardized climate survey. Thirdly, upon receiving and analyzing all the data, openly discuss the climate with the entire institution, gathering feedback as they hold these discussions—listening sessions, focus groups, online forums, etc. And, finally, they should report the findings and then set 3-5 goals they can accomplish within a year. Accountability measures should be incorporated to ensure that accomplishments are made.
They should make diversity an institutional priority by making a recommendation to the Board of Trustees regarding the plans. It will only work if there is full college/university buy-in. Honesty, open dialogue and an inclusive process, where the most important voices can be heard—the students, will help these Presidents address these issues and transform the institutional culture as a powerful goal.
DBE: Since the 70s, more than 50% of the black student collegiate enrollment has been female. Today over 65% of black students enrolled in degree granting institutions are women. What can CCs & 4-year institutions do to increase enrollment of black males? Are there any successful recruitment and retention programs of black males that you are aware of?
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer: I don’t have any particular recruitment program I am aware of that has had more success than others with regards to recruitment. However, there is a very powerful program at my college that has a proven record in helping to retain our Black male students in particular. It is called P.R.I.D.E, which stands for “PReparing Men for Intellectual, AcaDemic and Educational Success.” Halifax Community College is one of a select few colleges across the nation recognized by the Center for Community College Student Engagement (CCSSE) for its successful student-centered approaches that consistently connects students to faculty, students to students, resources, and services online, in the classroom, on campus, and beyond.
The program has also been recognized by the National Coordinator for the African American Male Initiative and is currently used as a model for the North Carolina Community College System Minority Male Mentoring program. To date, P.R.I.D.E. has been presented to more than 26 professional educational, community, and faith-based organizations.
P.R.I.D.E. employs a holistic approach for working with students. Trained Learning Coaches/Mentors (LC) are assigned to each student, providing support using a case-management model. The LCs provide a single-point of contact for all academic, personal, social, career, mentoring, and other needs from enrollment through a 6 year cycle. This monitoring includes tracking and maintaining contact during stop out, dropout, readmission, four-year college transfer, and graduation.
Since 2008, participants have earned 123 credentials – 42 associate degrees, 54 certificates and 18 diplomas. Additionally, HCC’s male 4-year transfer rate has increased from “3%” in 2008 to “36%” in 2013. Among 40 transfer students, 36 enrolled in 4-year colleges and 4 in community colleges. Among the thirty-six (36) 4-year transfers, 9 have received B.S. degrees, 13 are scheduled to graduate within 3 or fewer semesters, and only 7 are no longer enrolled. HCC is located in an economically deprived area in rural North Carolina. We report a FTE (full time equivalency) of just under 1400. In 2013, the P.R.I.D.E. program was recognized by the North Carolina Community College System as a “Best Practice” minority male mentoring program.
DBE: Any other comments that you would like to share with DBE readers?
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer: The new “Diversity Benefits Everyone” is a novel way for various voices across the nation to participate in much needed honest and open dialogue about diversity and the tremendous benefits it brings to our classrooms, the workforce and our lives. We must begin to work toward inclusivity rather than simply quantifying diversity. We, as a nation, have overlooked the richness of diversity and not ever taken advantage of our differences as a benefit.
From the perspective of educators, it is time for us to be creative and innovative in the manner we deliver education and what we deliver in order to generate outcomes that catapult our nation forward and secure this country’s future. Our focus must stay steadfast on our purpose by continuing to make education accessible, pursuing success and setting goals for excellence for all and not a few. This sermon has been preached over and over for many years. Many have fought and died for acceptance of differences and the benefits it brings. It is now time,, and even past time for us to act and truly embrace the benefits of diversity. My commitment is unwavering. I hope yours is too! Finally, the dialogue is open!
DBE: How can our readers contact you?
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer:
Halifax Community College, 100 College Drive, Weldon, NC 27870. 252-536-7289. ddavisfulmer985@halifaxcc.edu
Dr. Deryl Davis Fulmer is currently serving as Vice President of Academic Affairs at Halifax Community College in Weldon, North Carolina. She has 25 years of experience in higher education and has spent her career making education accessible and successful as a priority. She has a particular interest in providing the best opportunity for students to succeed and achieve excellence. She earned her bachelor degree from the University of North Carolina and her master and doctorate degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
