Commission Charge - July 6, 2020

Baylor University Announces Charges, Members of Commission on Historic Campus Representations

Many years ago, Baylor University made a strong commitment to reflect the racial diversity of God’s creation among our students, faculty and staff. Through various task forces, the President’s Diversity Council and other initiatives, significant progress has been made in several areas, including admissions, faculty hiring and our campus climate, to name a few. Yet we recognize we must do more as Baylor strives to be a caring Christian community for all of our students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends.

Nearly two weeks ago, the Baylor Board of Regents announced an extension of our comprehensive, campus-wide work in living out this commitment and honoring our mission as a Christian institution of higher learning — the establishment of a Commission on Historic Campus Representations as part of a unanimously passed resolution by the Board acknowledging the University’s historical connections to slavery and the Confederacy.

As we noted at the time, the Commission will provide guidance on presenting Baylor’s complete history as the University continues striving to foster an environment through which racial equality is inextricably linked to our mission, and in which students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of color know they are valued and loved throughout the Baylor community, both on campus and in all reaches of the Baylor Family.

Today, we are sharing the following specific charges for the Commission to develop a set of observations for the Board of Regents and Administration to consider as to how best communicate and reflect the complete history of Baylor University for current and future generations. 

Specifically, the Commission will:

1. Review the complete historical record and context of the University and its founders and early leaders, including historical connections to slavery and racial injustice.
2. Propose a plan for documenting and communicating the complete history of Baylor and its founders and early leaders, including historical connections to slavery and racial injustice.
3. Evaluate all statues, monuments, buildings and other aspects of campus within this complete historical context and in reference to the original intentions behind their physical location, placement and naming and provide observations for consideration.
4. Prepare a final report to be provided to the Board of Regents and the President no later than December 20, 2020.

We are grateful to the individuals who have agreed to contribute their expertise and perspectives to this important work as members of the Commission.

This charge and membership for the Commission were sent via email and released on the Baylor University Board of Regents website: eNews: Baylor University Announces Charges, Members of Commission on Historic Campus Representations.