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Intersection - UM's Outgoing Diversity Chief Says There's Still Work To Do

Kevin McDonald speaks with the Columbia Missourian and KBIA about the climate and future of inclusivity at MU, in a conversation at his Jesse Hall office on Monday, July 15, 2019. McDonald is in his last week of service at MU, as he takes on the role of vice president at the University of Virginia.
Amanda Lee
/
Columbia Missourian
Kevin McDonald speaks with the Columbia Missourian and KBIA about the climate and future of inclusivity at MU, in a conversation at his Jesse Hall office on Monday, July 15, 2019. McDonald is in his last week of service at MU, as he takes on the role of vice president at the University of Virginia.

On this edition of Intersection, KBIA and the Columbia Missourian sit down with Kevin McDonald, the chief diversity officer for the University of Missouri and MU, who is in his last week of service at MU before taking on the role of vice president at the University of Virginia. 

Kevin McDonald speaks with the Columbia Missourian and KBIA about the climate and future of inclusivity at MU, in a conversation at his Jesse Hall office on Monday, July 15, 2019. McDonald is in his last week of service at MU, as he takes on the role of vice president at the University of Virginia.
Credit Amanda Lee / Columbia Missourian
/
Columbia Missourian
Kevin McDonald speaks with the Columbia Missourian and KBIA about the climate and future of inclusivity at MU, in a conversation at his Jesse Hall office on Monday, July 15, 2019. McDonald is in his last week of service at MU, as he takes on the role of vice president at the University of Virginia.

In the summer of 2016, just months after the 2015 protests that brought national attention to the difficulties faced by diverse students on the University of Missouri’s flagship campus, the UM System hired McDonald to serve both the statewide campus system and to serve as a vice chancellor at MU heading up the Division of Inclusion, Diversity & Equity. 

Now – three years later – McDonald is beginning his last week at MU, before heading to his new post, in a similar diversity and engagement role as a vice president at the University of Virginia.

The Columbia Missourian's Sarah Haselhorst sat down with McDonald recently to get his thoughts on how far we've come with inclusivity and equity on campus and in the community, and how far we've yet to go. 

You can see the full reporting and a lot more information from Sarah Haselhorst, in her Columbia Missourian story, here.  

Listen to this week's Intersection with Kevin McDonald.

Copyright 2019 KBIA

JANET SAIDI is an assistant professor on the faculty of the Missouri School of Journalism and serves as the news director at KBIA 91.3 FM. Saidi has contributed to National Public Radio, the BBC and BBC World Service, and her writing has appeared in the Christian Science Monitor,the Los Angeles Times, and in a weekly media column for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Saidi helped produce the national PBS health care series âââââââ
Sarah Haselhorst
Columbia Missourian