By Lily Alexander, The Daily Lobo
Changes to two Regents’ policies on affirmative action at the University of New Mexico went into effect Tuesday, April 15. The revisions largely remove UNM’s commitment to affirmative action from the policies.
This comes amid proposed changes to similar policies in the University Administrative Policies manual.
This story originally appeared at The Daily Lobo and is republished with permission.
The Regents’ Policy Manual consists of policies adopted by the Board of Regents for the governance of UNM. It serves as a resource on the fundamental policies of the University and the operational procedures of the board, according to the manual’s preface.
On Jan. 21, President Donald Trump revoked a 1965 executive order that required federal contractors to create affirmative action plans and prohibited employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion and national origin by federal contractors, according to Reuters. This is one of the reasons UNM is modifying its affirmative action policies, according to a UNM FAQ.
Affirmative action at UNM seeks to promote race and gender diversity in employment by recruiting qualified women, minorities, people with disabilities and protected veterans, according to UNM Compliance, Ethics, & Equal Opportunity.
Unlike for policies in the University Administrative Policies manual, there is no public review and comment period for Regents’ policies. During public comment at the April 17 Board of Regents meeting, Kendal Jacobson, a graduate student in the linguistics department and a member of the United Graduate Workers of UNM, criticized changes to UNM affirmative action policies.
“UNM administration has decided to abandon its commitment to the racial and ethnic minorities that were previously protected after deciding that supporting them is no longer financially advantageous,” Jacobson said.
Regents’ Policy Manual – Section 2.3: Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action, Anti-Discrimination, Anti-Harassment, and Anti-Retaliation
Section 2.3 applies to all students, employees and applicants.
The revisions remove two of the three paragraphs in the affirmative action section of the policy — including one that states that for vacancies in job groups with underutilization, hiring officials give preference to finalists who are members of an underutilized group and equally or more qualified than other finalists.
Underutilization in affirmative action refers to the presence of fewer minorities or women in a particular job group than would reasonably be expected, according to the University of Rhode Island.
The revised policy removes the University’s commitment to an affirmative action program designed to increase participation of traditionally underrepresented groups in UNM’s workforce and educational programs. The policy instead commits the University to “inclusive excellence.”
“In support of this commitment, the University shall adhere to applicable law with regard (to) affirmative action requirements,” the policy now reads.
The revisions remove “national origin practices” from the list of situations UNM makes reasonable accommodations for.
The revisions also add that UNM “respects and celebrates the differences of all persons and understands the importance of a collaborative environment that prioritizes inclusive excellence and a shared sense of belonging.”
Regents’ Policy Manual – Section 6.2: Hiring, Promotion and Transfer
Section 6.2 applies to all University staff employees, but it does not apply to faculty, athletic coaches or student employees.
The revisions remove references to affirmative action and underutilization. The policy now reads that “hiring, promotion, and transfer of staff employees shall be based on training, experience, and past performance, in accordance with the University’s equal employment opportunity policy.”
Lily Alexander is the editor-in-chief of the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at editorinchief@dailylobo.com or on X @llilyalexander