COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – The University of Missouri System plans to enact several initiatives in the next 90 days to address racial turmoil that led to the resignations of President Tim Wolfe and Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin.
The university system said in a news release Monday that it will appoint its first chief officer for diversity, inclusion and equity. It also plans a review of all university policies related to staff and student conduct and to provide more support to those who experience discrimination. It also pledges to work toward a more diverse faculty and staff.
Task forces addressing inclusion will be required on all four of its campuses.
Wolfe’s resignation was effective immediately. Loftin will step down at the end of the year to take another job at the school.
The embattled chancellor of the University of Missouri’s flagship campus in Columbia says he’s stepping down at the end of the year to take a different position.
Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin’s announcement Monday came hours after the university system’s president, Tim Wolfe, said he was resigning, effective immediately.
Black student groups had been calling for leadership changes at the university, saying it had done a poor job of responding to complaints about racial issues, including that minority students had been subjected to slurs.
The deans of nine university departments wrote to Wolfe and the university system’s governing board on Monday calling for Loftin’s removal, citing a “deep concern about the multitude of crises on our flagship campus.”
As president, Wolfe oversaw all four University of Missouri campuses.
