Friday, February 24, 2023
In our changing world, the University of Waterloo has a developed reputation for innovation and excellence and the Library supports this mission by being a partner in learning, research and innovation. The Library is committed to the principles of EDIA and drawing from its values, we aim to help advance our strategic goals of catalyzing learning and research, engaging with our community and growing as a learning organization.
This past fall, the Library hired a new associate director, Jermal Jones, who will oversee the EDIA portfolio within the Library and work to embed EDIA principles into all our services and processes.
Over the next two years, Jones will focus on developing a variety of training opportunities for the Library, investing in staff learning, and updating policies; creating opportunities to engage and support our diverse community, decentering whiteness through initiatives such as Anti-Racism Reads, a workshop series and space updates; and catalyzing learning and research through resource collections development and innovative programs and projects, such as Human Library and Oral Histories.
This work does not happen in isolation; Jones will also work closely with the Office of Indigenous Relations, the Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism, and invested groups from all communities that the Library services, for a holistic campus approach.
