Cultivating ‘a Livable World’

New leader expands equity and inclusivity efforts

by BROOKE THAMES

Photo: Emily Paine

Professor Thelathia “Nikki” Young was named associate provost for equity & inclusive excellence this summer.

Professor Thelathia “Nikki” Young was named associate provost for equity & inclusive excellence this summer.

Since joining Bucknell in 2011, Professor Thelathia “Nikki” Young, women’s & gender studies and religion, has worked to cultivate an educational community in which every Bucknellian feels a sense of belonging. This fall, Young accelerated her efforts as the new associate provost for equity & inclusive excellence — an appointment that supports a crucial element in the University’s proactive plan to foster inclusivity by confronting systemic racism and racial injustice.

To amplify the voices of Bucknell’s minoritized communities, President John Bravman announced this summer that his senior leadership team would now include Young’s position. Her appointment, effective Aug. 1, followed a year in which she served as interim associate provost.

During that time, Young transformed inclusivity training for faculty and staff through an open-participation workshop series. Believing that all members of University hiring committees should be educated in equity and inclusion, Young also expanded workshops related to recruitment strategies that prioritize diversity advocacy. Her most recent project, the Transforming Communities Initiative, creates space for students, faculty and staff to engage in honest conversations around race and difference on campus.

“Our commitment needs to be in fostering a community of critically conscious people who can conceive of and cultivate a livable world for all.”

Professor Thelathia “Nikki” Young

“I was very focused on introducing conceptual shifts that we needed to make in response to circumstances Bucknell is facing as we address social injustice, think intersectionally about marginalized people and create accountability structures,” says Young, who earned her B.A. from the University of North Carolina Asheville and a Ph.D. in religious ethics from Emory University. “Moving forward, one of the things we are being called to do is not only to create an inclusive community but also intentionally deconstruct race and racism, which is distinctive from DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] efforts.

Key strategies to advance that work include incorporating the study of injustice and inequality across the curriculum, launching an anti-racism task force to identify opportunities for systemic change and making use of a newly established anti-racism fund to support campuswide programming.

In the wake of national protests following the death of George Floyd in May, Young wrote to the Bucknell community, noting the “need for the entire campus to understand and acknowledge the tangible effects of privilege, power and oppression.

“For those of us invested in liberal arts education,” she added, “our commitment needs to be in fostering a community of critically conscious people who can conceive of and cultivate a livable world for all.”

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