University of Maryland

On June 29, 2023, UMD's President and Provost issued a statement in response to the Supreme Court's ruling on affirmative action which reads in part as follows: "While we do not yet know the full impact of this decision on our admission practices, we do know that our already-unassailable commitment to a diverse and inclusive campus must strengthen and grow within the bounds of the law...Needless to say, this decision is disappointing. Race has never been the determining factor here at the University of Maryland. Instead, it was one of 26 unique factors that we have considered in undergraduate admissions. It has been said that it’s impossible to dismantle centuries of racism without acknowledging and considering race in the decisions we make today. However, we remain optimistic that our campus will continue to attract and retain a diverse student body."

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion's Bias Incident Support Services (BISS) team is offering "Stop the Hate" trainings for the spring 2023 semester. These trainings "provide an introduction to bias incidents and the resources available through BISS for those impacted at UMD."

Upon request, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion facilitates trainings on diversity and inclusion, implicit bias, and cultural competency.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion posted videos from its 2020-2021 training series titled "Anti-Racism Teach-In" and describes the series as follows: "This series of anti-racism teach-ins gathered experts on anti-racism from UMD and beyond, including students, leaders, faculty and alums, as one action the UMD community could take as we learn to be anti-racist in the face of racism everywhere it occurs."

As of 2020, UMD's "University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders" has lead to many actions and initiatives including "Making racial bias training mandatory for all students, faculty, staff, administrators, health professionals, and student organizations."

The Office of Undergraduate Studies announced that, on March 1, 2022, "the University Senate overwhelmingly approved meaningful changes in UMD's General Education diversity requirement" and that "Full implementation of these changes is expected to take several years." New course categories include "Understanding Structures of Racism and Inequality" and "Navigating Diverse Social Environments." 

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion's "Words of Engagement Intergroup Dialogue Program (WEIDP)" is a "for-credit social justice education program that brings together students of diverse social identity groups for facilitated face-to-face conversations about identity, power and accountability." The Program's courses count towards the Cultural Competence Diversity Requirement.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion outlines its "Bias Incident Response Protocol" and allows members of the campus community to report a bias incident.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion has a "Hate-Bias Response Team" whose primary role is to "review hate-bias incidents, to provide appropriate responses based on the nature of the incident and to work collaboratively to provide educational outreach to the campus."

As of 2020, UMD's "University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders" has lead to many actions and initiatives including creating an "oversight committee that evaluates and sanctions faculty members who have allegedly taken part in any discriminatory behavior towards undergraduate and graduate students."

As of 2020, UMD's "University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders" has lead to many actions and initiatives including the following: "Immediate response to hate speech or actions from the university including a consequence (e.g: mark on the transcript or potential suspension)"

As of 2020, UMD's "University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders" has lead to many actions and initiatives including "Creating a racial incident hotline through the Counseling Center to cater to the mental health of BIPOC students."

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion's "TerrapinSTRONG" program is described as follows: " All new faculty, staff and students participate in the TerrapinSTRONG onboarding course, as well as TerrapinSTRONG onboarding initiatives within their division/college/school. These onboarding experiences are just the first step to creating an inclusive campus. TerrapinSTRONG is the shared understanding from which we work to improve the sense of community, connection and inclusion on our campus."

University of Maryland, Baltimore County, leadership signed a letter to Congress in support of "a United States Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT)".

The university held an "Anti Racism Teach-in Series" last year.

The Department of Sociology's "Critical Race Initiative" is described as a "group of scholars who center critical race theory (CRT) as an important framework by which to understand inequality in society." Additionally, one of CRI's "primary" aims is to "Foster racial uplift activism through scholarship, teaching, community-based participatory research, and social policy."

Divested from the 1033 Police Program.

As of 2020, UMD's "University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders" has lead to many actions and initiatives including "Continuous mandatory training on implicit bias in policing and how to reduce its negative impacts on the UMD community."

In response to the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, UMD provided students with anti-racist resources, including a model on responding to online hate and bias.

In response to the Summer of 2020 protests, UMD has created an "Anti-Racist Toolkit: Transforming Knowledge to Action."

On September 30, 2020, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion posted a video titled "Critical Race Theory as a Tool of Resistance" which features a UMD faculty panel.

On December 5, 2018, the University published its 311 page "Comprehensive Campus Climate Study for Diversity and Inclusion." The Study's major research findings are based on the subjects of microaggressions, discrimination, and hate and bias among several others.

UMD and Bowie State University have created a "social justice alliance to honor the legacy of BSU alumnus 1st Lt. Richard W. Collins III and promote social justice on our campuses." The alliance provides "learning opportunities for BSU and UMD students by infusing social justice education in the curriculum and experiential activities."

In an April 2024 report titled “No Graduation Without Indoctrination: The DEI Course Mandate,” the organization Speech First “investigated 248 colleges and universities across each state” and found that “[more] than two-thirds include DEI academic requirements,” including the University of Maryland. According to the report (pg. 14), UM's course "'Understanding Plural Societies is the centerpiece of the University's Diversity Requirement'."

Football players wore anti-racist messages on their jerseys. Additionally, UMaryland created an "end-racism" video.

The university is "acknowledging past history and promoting inclusivity by naming new buildings for barrier-breaking alumni of color."

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion published a message to the University community and stated the following: "We must learn to be anti-racist in the face of racism whenever and wherever it occurs. Our system is broken as evidenced by disparities in education, criminal justice, income levels, housing, and health. We are all part of this broken system. It is our human responsibility to co-create a new system that is more responsive to inequities."