Purdue names first ever Chief Diversity Officer

Purdue University is the latest to join the diversity bandwagon. For the first time, the university will have a vice provost for diversity and a chief diversity officer. With minorities occupying only 13.4% of their undergraduate population and 16.2% of graduate students for the 2008-2009 academic year, Purdue has made diversity a strategic priority in recent months.

This announcement then is timely. G. Christine Taylor, formerly the assistant vice president for institutional diversity at Miami University of Ohio, is yet to be approved by the university's board of trustees. If approved, her job responsibilities will include working with students, faculty and staff to increase minority counts with emphasis on attracting and retaining a diverse student body.