The Mission Statement of Vermont State University states: Vermont State University prepares all students for meaningful work and responsible citizenship by fostering their intellectual, personal, and creative growth in an accessible, caring, and inclusive community. As Vermont’s regional public university, our technological, professional, and liberal arts programs engage with partners throughout Vermont and beyond to provide students with rich real-world learning while meeting the needs of our communities and the state.
This spotlight features students who are doing the hard and important work that will make this mission a reality. On the NVU Johnson campus, the new Mamadou N’Diaye Resource Center has opened and brings the campus community together to celebrate the new space for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students. This space was created through the work of the Coalition of Minority Students (COMS) to be a safe place for people of color in a predominantly white campus community, as well as a place to host events open to all students, faculty, staff, and community members interested in learning more about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion principles. The resource center is named in memory of a former NVU student. Mamadou was a rising sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Media Arts and a basketball player for the Badgers. He died in a drowning accident in July of 2020.
Devyn Thompson, COMS co-president and third-year English major from Waldorf, Md. who is also pursuing licensure in secondary education, spearheaded this effort. Thompson has also put many hours of work into the successful adoption of the Anti-Racism Pledge by the Vermont State Colleges System Board of Trustees. Thank you to Devyn and the other members of COMS, as well as the NVU administration, for supporting this concept and turning it into a reality.