A message from AACRAO Executive Director Michael Reilly and the AACRAO Board of Directors
As many of you know, next year's Tech/Transfer conference was scheduled to be held in Charlotte, North Carolina. Many of us were looking forward to traveling to Charlotte for the first time. But in May of this year, the governor of North Carolina signed into law HB 2, which effectively bans local governments from passing anti-discrimination rules that would provide protections for gay and transgender peoples. The law was a reaction to a measure passed by the city of Charlotte that would protect gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from discrimination by businesses.
The legislation runs counter to AACRAO's deep commitment to access, opportunity, and inclusiveness. In response to the legislation, AACRAO Executive Director Mike Reilly sent a letter to the Governor McCrory on behalf of the AACRAO Board of Directors expressing our concerns. While our initial hope was that we might be able to proceed with the conference in Charlotte and use the conference as an opportunity to highlight our commitment to access and inclusion, it became clear that with the growing number of cities and states who have announced travel bans to North Carolina and the feedback we have received from members, there would be significant impact on the attendance and feasibility of the conference. As a result we have canceled the conference in Charlotte and will be moving the conference to New Orleans.
AACRAO’s Core Competencies and Proficiencies under Diversity and Inclusion states that “Admissions, registrar, and enrollment management professionals value and foster an environment that ensures respect, support and safety for all members of their campus and professional communities, and actively promote the expansion of ideas, perspectives, and understanding that comes from a diverse and inclusive community.”
"One of the great strengths of our 106-year old association is our commitment to access and opportunity to all, to breaking down barriers that prevent people from achieving their goals through the transformational power of education, and to speaking out when we see attempts to marginalize any members of our community," said AACRAO President Paul Kyle.
We hope that you will infuse in your work this commitment to diversity and inclusion and, as our Core Competencies describe: "identify systematic barriers to equality and inclusiveness and to purposefully advance…processes and systems to contribute to an inclusive campus climate."