Equity & Diversity

Report a Bias Incident

Report a Bias Incident or Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, & Inclusion (DEAI) Cultural Climate Concern in the UT College of Pharmacy or any UT Pharmacy affiliated experiential sites: A bias incident is a behavior or organizational culture that is derogatory or unwelcoming in nature, and targets an individual based on their actual or perceived race, ethnicity, color, religion, national origin, disability, veteran status, marital/familial status, possession of a General Education Development Certificate (GED) as compared to a high school diploma, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, sex, age, or genetic information.

Please understand that this reporting mechanism for UT Pharmacy should NOT replace any incidents or concerns intended for the campus resource Office of Institutional Equity (OIE), whose responsibilities include investigating and helping to resolve complaints of discrimination.

Whether submitting a concern here or not, you still have the right to contact the Dean of Students Office and can complete an OIE Campus Climate Incident Online Report Form.

UTCOP community members can report a Bias Incident or Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, & Inclusion (DEAI) Cultural Climate Concern in UT Pharmacy or any UT Pharmacy affiliated experiential sites.

Diversity Statement

The College of Pharmacy at UT Austin, ranked among the top three pharmacy programs in the country, aims to be an exemplar of intersectionally inclusive excellence through a rigorous approach to the understanding of intercultural engagement in our ever-expanding global world and knowledge economy.

The College of Pharmacy further labors to uphold a vision that inspires and challenges, yet explicitly affirms the students, staff, and faculty of our diverse community with authentic appreciation for the differences that engineer our pluralistic ingenuity. Our commitment to be intentionally inclusive in the culture, curriculum, and practices of the College of Pharmacy is resolute.

Statement on Gender Equity and Underrepresented Minorities

The University of Texas at Austin and the College of Pharmacy place a high priority on ensuring that the campus is a place where diverse people, ideas, and perspectives can flourish.  To learn more, visit our UT Office for Inclusion and Equity.

Dr. Carolyn Brown represents the College of Pharmacy on the University Faculty Gender Equity Council.

Dr. Skyller Walkes represents the College of Pharmacy on the Council for Racial and Ethnic Equity and Diversity (CREED).

Acknowledging the Pain and Progress of Our Indigenous Community

July 12, 2020

Greetings UTCOP Family,

I hope this message finds you well and motivated for another week ahead. This past week was a reflective one for many reasons. Through that reflection, I aim to be intentional in my efforts to amplify the experiences of our BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities, along with other historically marginalized identities to foster an intentionally inclusive community. In events that none of us could have ever foreseen, these conversations are happening spherically now- in our college, across our institution, and around the nation and world. Some of the dialogue brought forth has been painful (to tell and to hear) and at the same time, even healing. In short, progress is often borne of discomfort, and I’m writing now to underscore this point. Much of the city and campus spaces that our buildings and bodies currently occupy must also be acknowledged with respect to the indigenous lands that were dispossessed, as a consequence.

On July 9th, the Supreme Court ruled that a large part of eastern Oklahoma falls within a Native American reservation. This case served to confront the United States’ long and shameful history of disavowed treaties and the forced removals of Indigenous tribes from their land. Much of which is still residually felt today.

Buttressed by years of demonstrations and protests, it was also determined last week that the Dakota Access Pipeline must now shut down pending an environmental review and subsequently be emptied of oil in August. This was a monumental victory for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, other Native American communities, and environmental groups who have actively fought the project for years.

I share these current events not as a political statement but to acknowledge the continued struggle and recent gains of the Indigenous community. Our Indigenous brothers, sisters, and siblings are fewer in number, and as a result, are often forgotten and pushed further into the margins by our lack of acknowledgement. Please join me in reflection today and every day in recognizing their struggles and celebrating their contributions to our existence, that which is taught and visible to us, and that which is lesser known.

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead…

Warmest Regards,
Skyller Walkes, Ph.D.

College Strategic Plan

For additional information about diversity efforts, see Goal 4 (Recruitment, Retention, and Recognition of an Outstanding and Diverse Faculty and Staff).