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Pomona College

Undergraduate School

Mailing Address
333 N College Way
Claremont, California 91711
Phone
(909) 621-8000
Email address
admissions@pomona.edu
School Information
"Established in 1887, Pomona College is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, Calif., about 35 miles east of Los Angeles. We offer a comprehensive curriculum, with 48 majors in the arts, humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. "One of the premier liberal arts colleges in the nation, Pomona is a close-knit and diverse community of accomplished scholars, scientists, entrepreneurs and artists who are passionate about making a difference in the world. There are approximately 1,670 students who come from 59 nations and all 50 U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico. "With a student-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, our students work closely with their professors in the classroom, in the lab and in the field. And our location—within an hour of Los Angeles and the mountains, desert and beaches—provides countless opportunities for field study, research and internships." (Source: https://www.pomona.edu/about)
General Information
Pomona College has encouraged students to remove leaders of student organizations for "inappropriate speech". What constitutes "inappropriate speech" is not clear. No mandatory Critical Race Training sessions are yet required of students. However, see developments below:

Actions Taken

Curriculum Changes and Requirements
  • The school will “strengthen and promote courses that focus on diversity issues such as the current Analyzing Difference courses, and our ethnic studies programs, both intercollegiate and at Pomona.”
  • All students are required to “pass at least one Analyzing Difference course to graduate.” Analyzing Difference courses are “primarily focused on a sustained analysis of the causes and effects of structured inequality and discrimination, and their relation to U.S. society.”
Political Actions and Support for Anti-Racism
  • On June 29, 2023, Pomona released a statement following the Supreme Court ruling saying, “Pomona College will adhere to this latest court ruling surrounding affirmative action; we also remain committed to our values of diversity, equity and inclusion.”
Program and Research Funding
  • The Institute for Inclusive Excellence hosted the DEI Individual Reflections Project in summer of 2021 and summer of 2023. This resulted in a report which summarized the college’s commitments, which asks students and faculty to “apply inclusion and equity toward undergraduate creative activity and research” and “communicate to internal and external constituencies their commitment to DEI within classrooms, social spaces, and campus activities,” among other things.
  • The school made a commitment to “expand opportunities for coordinated faculty development around inclusive pedagogies/classrooms (e.g., Inclusive Excellent initiative, CTL/TLC events, Napier and Draper Center initiatives, etc.)”
Resources
  • The college has encouraged students to remove leaders of student organizations for "inappropriate speech".
  • The Claremont Colleges Library System wishes to "educate the community on issues surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement and protests" by providing "Anti-racism & Black Lives Matter Resources." Topics of discussion include "anti-racism, systemic racism, systemic oppression, police brutality, [and] mass incarceration."
  • Pomona College is home to the Institute for Inclusive Excellence. The Institute for Inclusive Excellence centers on “helping faculty and staff further develop their inclusive teaching and mentorship by providing opportunities to collaborate, connect to resources, and facilitate ongoing conversations about inclusivity on-campus while enhancing the collegiate experience for our students.”
  • Pomona College announced that Professor Cheryl Harris will be the speaker for the inaugural 2023 symposium that the Institute for Inclusive Excellence will host.
  • The school has a website which provides a plethora of DEI resources for students.
Symbolic Actions
  • The Biology Department released a "Statement of Solidarity and Commitment to Anti-racism" in June 2020.
  • The Music Department announced its support for anti-racism.
  • The Chemistry Department commits itself "to being a diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist department."
  • In 2020, Pomona co-founded "Liberal Arts Colleges Racial Equity Leadership Alliance." "Eight representatives of each LACRELA college will participate in monthly virtual programming created by the USC Race and Equity Center starting January 2021." The majority of these colleges will be committing $18,000 annually to the organization for the first three years after its creation.
Last updated June 25th, 2024
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