Dear Geographers:

 

As many of you know, a proactive stance toward diversity and inclusiveness is part of the long-terms plan of University of Tennessee, the College, and our Department. This is a goal embraced by many of you and I want to say thanks for that.  It shows up in our faculty searches/hires, student recruitment, the content of our courses, and our willingness to engage the broader campus in critical discussions of privilege and discrimination (e.g., recent programs being organized by The Progressive Student Movement).

 

One important strategy in creating a more diverse UTK Geography is communicating our commitment to the wider world, through something as simple as our web page.  The Department is in the process of updating and eventually revising the web page.  I have posted a new web narrative on our front door page (web.utk.edu/~utkgeog/) that states our willingness to reach out to under-represented groups while also re-telling an important chapter from the history of UTK Geography.

 

In the web narrative,  I talk about a former professor in our department named Lillian Stimson.  At a time when Geography (and much of the academic world) was heavily male dominated, Dr. Stimson had an important impact on the development of Geography at Tennessee as well as the southeastern United States.  I also use this narrative to recognize some of the other important women geographers who have served (and continue to serve) at UTK.  I first learned of Dr. Stimson's story when I served as Pres. of SEDAAG and it was her connection with the university that long gave me a positive impression of the program, leading me to apply for the job of Dept. Head. 

 

As I mention in my web document, an emphasis on diversity does not simply call on us to create new programs and initiatives (although this is important).  It also calls on us to go back into our history and pay tribute to early leaders who challenged the status quo.  I think UTK Geography has a wonderful history upon which to further advance diversity, although there is clearly more work to do. 

 

I hope you enjoy learning about Dr. Stimson. Perhaps its time to start a Lillian Stimson lecture series in which we host notable women geographers and other minority scholars. Its just a thought.  Have a good weekend.

 

Best wishes,

Derek