After
over
two
years
of
deliberation,
research
and
engagement
with
community
members,
the
President’s
Commission on Carbon Neutrality
released its final 104-page report
on March 18. The document
outlines
50
recommendations
for the University of Michigan’s
three campuses to achieve net
zero carbon emissions by 2040
as part of efforts to combat the
ongoing climate crisis. None of
the recommendations are binding
— instead, they must now be
approved by University President
Mark Schlissel and the Board of
Regents.
Schlissel
announced
the
creation of the PCCN in February
2019.
The
announcement
followed considerable activism
from students, who called on
the University to take action to
mitigate climate change. The
commission,
co-chaired
by
Engineering professor Stephen
Forrest
and
Law
professor
Jennifer
Haverkamp,
consists
of faculty, staff and alumni
from
across
the
University’s
departments and was created to
develop a set of recommendations
to achieve carbon neutrality.
The commissioners set multiple
goals outlining the path to carbon
neutrality within three targeted
scopes of carbon emissions. Scope
1 includes the University’s direct
emissions, including those from
the University power plant, the
transportation and bus fleet on
the campuses and emissions from
boilers in University buildings.
Scope 2 emissions derive from
University off-campus electricity
and “purchased power.” Scope
3
emissions
are
indirectly
attributed to the University and
include commuting to campus and
food procurement on campus.
The final report maintains
the targets of achieving carbon
neutrality on Scope 1 and Scope 2
emissions by 2025 and achieving
Scope 3 carbon neutrality by no
later than 2040.
The final recommendations
were initially supposed to be
released
in
December
2020
— instead, a draft report was
released and community members
were invited to respond, with
some unsatisfied by what they
considered
the
University’s
unambitious 2040 end goal and
reliance on carbon offsets. More
than 521 comments were submitted
to the commission responding
to the draft recommendations.
The
commission
also
hosted
community
forums
with
the
Planet Blue Ambassador Program
and the Student Sustainability
Coalition in January to engage
with stakeholders and solicit
additional feedback.
Using carbon offsets
According
to
the
report,
meeting the proposed emissions
targets will depend heavily on
the use of carbon offsets. This is
a strategy in which the University
would balance their greenhouse
gas output by investing in carbon
reduction or sequestration that
would occur off-campus. Activists
have
long
criticized
carbon
offsets, arguing they let wealthy
institutions essentially pay to emit
more carbon and do not directly
cut
an
organization’s
carbon
output.
The
ADVANCE
Program
is
a “critical and evidence-based”
component of the University of
Michigan’s diversity, equity and
inclusion
initiatives,
according
to
University
spokesman
Rick
Fitzgerald.
Through
workshops,
trainings, consultations and annual
reports, ADVANCE synthesizes data
about the University’s climate and
conducts research on demographics
among faculty and staff to ensure the
“success of a diverse and excellent
faculty.”
ADVANCE
also
provides
resources like a handbook for
faculty searches and hiring, as
well as support for faculty from
underrepresented
backgrounds
through identity-based networks,
among other programs.
A Michigan Daily investigation
of the ADVANCE program found
numerous previously undisclosed
allegations
of
discrimination,
ranging from 2012 to 2020, in an
allegedly toxic workplace with high
staff turnover.
In interviews with The Daily, 12
former ADVANCE employees —
ten who quit or left, and two who
were fired in the past four years —
alleged that ADVANCE’s workplace
environment hinders its ability to
engage in meaningful diversity,
equity and inclusion work.
Documents obtained by The
Daily also indicate that employees
repeatedly raised their concerns
about discrimination and racism to
program leadership and University
administration over the past five
years. In one instance, an employee
alleging discrimination was offered
a non-disparagement clause after
her
position
was
terminated
and she brought her concerns to
administrators.
When
asked
to
comment
on whether the University or
ADVANCE leadership was aware
of internal climate issues over the
past five years, Fitzgerald wrote
in an email to The Daily on Feb.
25 that these concerns may have
been shared anonymously and that
ADVANCE is working to support its
employees.
“There also may be instances
where
concerns
are
either
not
reported
or
are
reported
anonymously, which can limit any
unit’s ability to respond,” Fitzgerald
wrote. “The current leadership team
and staff of the ADVANCE program
is looking to the future and focusing
on ways that it can continue to carry
out its mission of supporting the
recruitment,
retention,
climate,
and leadership development for
a diverse and excellent faculty
based on research and evaluation;
knowledge and skill development;
community building; and resources
and support.”
“There was no one to really have
your back”
The
University’s
ADVANCE
Program was born out of a 2001
National Science Foundation grant
that aimed to increase the number of
female-identifying faculty in science,
technology, engineering and math
and to promote gender equity among
women at the University overall.
The University was among the first
nine higher education institutions
to receive the NSF grant — between
2001 and 2007, it received nearly $4
million total.
The NSF grant ended in 2007,
but ADVANCE continued to grow.
Jennifer Linderman, professor in
the College of Engineering and
former associate dean for graduate
education,
became
director
in
March 2016. She currently oversees
the program along with Shelly
Conner, director of research and
evaluation, and Associate Directors
Cynthia Hudgins and Isis Settles.
(Conner replaced Janet Malley,
previous director of research and
evaluation, this past year.)
Linderman referred The Daily
to Fitzgerald when reached for
comment for this article. Both
Malley and Hudgins declined to
comment when contacted by The
Daily. Conner was not employed
by ADVANCE when any of the 12
employees that The Daily spoke to
worked there, and all employees
stressed that they had no issues with
Settles.
According to the University’s
2020-2021 Budget Detail, ADVANCE
received almost $2.3 million last
year, making it one of the most
well-funded
programs
overseen
by the Provost and Executive Vice
President for Academic Affairs.
This is more than twice the amount
issued to the Office of Institutional
Equity, which investigates sexual
misconduct claims and other claims
of discrimination.
Fitzgerald wrote in the Feb. 25
email to The Daily that ADVANCE’s
focus on faculty distinguishes it
from programs run by the Office of
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, as
the latter also includes issues related
to student diversity.
“The original focus of ADVANCE
was to increase the presence of
women faculty in STEM fields,”
Fitzgerald wrote. “That focus has
been expanded to include a broader
definition of diversity among the
faculty and all areas of research and
teaching on campus. But its focus
continues to be on university faculty.
That’s different from the DEI office,
for
example,
which
addresses
all members of the university
community – students, faculty and
staff.”
In
particular,
ADVANCE
produces
reports
that
use
institutional
data
to
highlight
gender and race gaps among faculty.
The most recent reports focused on
faculty equity during the COVID-19
pandemic as well as exit interviews
as a way of understanding job
satisfaction and reasons for faculty
departure.
According to a 2019 report created
by ADVANCE, ADVANCE programs
have “positively influenced” the
increase in faculty diversity and
representation since 2002.
But within ADVANCE, reports
of staff dissatisfaction have been left
seemingly unaddressed by program
directors, according to the former
employees who spoke with The
Daily.
In a 2017 survey mandated as part
of the University’s DEI Five-Year
Strategic Plan and obtained by The
Daily, 50% of ADVANCE employees
said they were dissatisfied or very
dissatisfied by the program’s climate
and environment, compared to
an average of 21% for staff across
all 49 units at the University who
responded to the survey. 40% of
ADVANCE respondents also said
they experienced some form of
discrimination in the past 12 months
at work — a percentage considerably
higher than the 15% University-wide
total.
ADVANCE leadership received
the final report in December 2017,
according to the copy obtained
by The Daily. All 10 ADVANCE
employees employed at the time
responded to the survey.
Craig Smith, former ADVANCE
employee and current University
library
assessment
specialist,
worked at ADVANCE from Dec.
2014 to May 2018 as a member of the
research & evaluation team when
the internal climate survey took
place. Smith recalled that program
leadership was hesitant to discuss
the results of the survey after they
were sent to employees.
Smith said that a group of
employees met in January 2018 and
drafted a list of requests for program
leadership to address the report’s
results — specifically the part that
showed that 50% were dissatisfied
or very dissatisfied with the office’s
internal climate.
“We had a meeting as a group
to talk about (this result), and the
director would only budget a half-
hour for the meeting and initially
didn’t want to talk about that result
at all and wanted to just talk about
campus-wide results,” Smith said.
“And so we had to ask her specifically
to start addressing the climate at
ADVANCE.”
On Jan. 16, 2018, Smith met
with Linderman and read to her
a seven-page document he had
written describing incidents of
perceived
discrimination
and
racism at ADVANCE, according to
Smith. Another former ADVANCE
employee confirmed to The Daily
that they saw this document in 2018;
The Daily has also reviewed this
document.
Smith said while Linderman
agreed to take these claims seriously,
he never saw them followed up on or
discussed after this initial meeting.
Smith also alleged that ADVANCE
leadership tried to undermine the
survey results by saying they only
reflected the opinions of a small
group of employees.
“The director of ADVANCE was
saying that those results were just
the result of disgruntled employees
who had already left,” Smith said.
“But the fact of the matter is that
people left because of the climate
there. And so she was dismissing,
in some ways, the climate itself by
saying that people who weren’t
happy left and now it’s fine.”
Another
former
ADVANCE
employee, who asked to remain
anonymous due to fear of retaliation,
also worked at ADVANCE in the
years leading up to the internal
report. This employee corroborated
many of Smith’s claims. In this
article, they will be referred to as
Alex.
Alex said that many of the climate
issues
at
ADVANCE
stemmed
from microaggressions — small,
seemingly mundane conversations
or tones of voice that made the
office a hostile place for employees,
particularly people of color. They
said that apart from anonymous
surveys like the mandated internal
DEI report, it was difficult to give
voice to these microaggressions
given
the
small
size
of
the
organization.
“People
were
excited
when
the (University-wide) DEI survey
happened because it felt like the
first time where people could shine
a light on some of the issues taking
place within the ADVANCE office,”
Alex said.
But even with the DEI survey,
Alex said tackling these issues was
difficult because of how small and
hierarchical ADVANCE is.
“It was frustrating because you
felt very silenced, because you
didn’t have the numbers,” Alex said.
“We’re the ones doing the work for
the rest of the University. There was
no one to really have your back if you
had issues.”
Fitzgerald confirmed that an all-
staff meeting took place in January
2018 to discuss the survey results.
According to Fitzgerald, this was
followed by individual meetings
between ADVANCE employees and
outside consultants in 2019, where
employees had the opportunity
to discuss these results as well as
their issues with the climate at
ADVANCE.
“There
have
been
many
additional staff discussions since,
as the ADVANCE staff has worked
to ensure that the unit’s climate is
inclusive, equitable and respectful
for all,” Fitzgerald wrote in his Feb.
25 email.
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Wednesday, March 24, 2021
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See ADVANCE, Page 3
FOCAL POINT
Daily investigation finds allegations of toxicity,
discrimination in U-M ADVANCE Program
12 former employees discuss high staff turnover in University office supporting faculty DEI
LIAT WEINSTEIN
Managing News Editor
Design by Madison Grosvenor
ADMINISTRATION
CAMPUS LIFE
Commission on Carbon Neutrality
publishes final report, hands off task of
reducing emissions to administration
After two years of deliberation and research, PCCN
recommends achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040
ARJUN THAKKAR &
CHRISTIAN JULIANO
Daily Staff Reporters
The virtual opening ceremony
for Asian American and Pacific
Islander Heritage Month began
March 17 with a discussion about
rediscovering cultural identities
as well as anti-Asian racism in
the wake of the Georgia massage
parlor shootings in which eight
people were killed, most of whom
were Asian women. The shootings
sparked discussion over the long
history of anti-Asian racism and
violence in the United States and
rise in hate crimes against Asian
Americans due to the COVID-19
pandemic,
particularly
against
women.
Over 40 participants attended
the opening ceremony, including
the
creators
of
“Continental
Shifts,” a podcast aiming to explore
Samoan and Filipino-American
identities by discussing education,
politics, union organizing and hip-
hop.
This event was hosted by the
AAPI Heritage Month Planning
Committee in coordination with
the Office of Multi-Ethnic Student
Affairs.
It
was
co-sponsored
by the United Asian American
Organizations and the APID/A
Staff Association.
Public Health junior Victoria
Minka,
student
coordinator
for the AAPI Heritage Month
planning
committee,
began
by acknowledging March 16’s
shootings.
Minka
emphasized
the
prevalence
of
xenophobia
in
the United States before asking
attendees to honor a moment of
silence for the individuals who
were killed March 16, as well as
others who have lost their lives due
to hate crimes and racist violence.
“This violence is not new to us,”
Minka said. “There is a pattern of
xenophobia and racism towards
Asian Americans that only feels
like it’s beginning to be recognized
by the American public. We
know its history, and we feel the
reverberations of this pain.”
Many students commented in
the chat that they came to this
event to be with a safe, comfortable
and supportive community. Many
others said they came to offer
support.
Gabriel Tanglao and Estella
Owoimaha-Church,
hosts
of
“Continental Shifts,” began with
acknowledgments that the places
they were Zooming from — New
Jersey and California — were
stolen
Indigenous
lands
and
recognized the tribes native to that
land.
While
discussing
Tuesday’s
shootings,
Owoimaha-Church
shared various Samoan proverbs
that create space for kindness and
community.
The two said their podcast
originated when they met at a
leadership event and connected
over their curiosity about their
heritage, which eventually became
the project’s focus.
“It’s really about wayfinding and
self-reflection along our journey in
the diaspora,” Tanglao said.
Owoimaha-Church said while
the COVID-19 pandemic posed
challenges, it also provided an
opportunity for the pair to meet
virtually and collaborate on a
podcast about identity in ways
they may not have been able to
previously.
AAPI Heritage Month opening
ceremony talks rediscovering cultural
identities, anti-Asian racism
In wake of Atlanta shootings, podcast creators
& attendees discuss dismantling white supremacy
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com
IVY MUENCH
Daily Staff Reporter
See PCCN, Page 4