Turning the corner initiative continues work
Facilitating meaningful conversation between law enforcement leaders and Black students is a top priority for CMU’s Turning the Corner on Racism initiative.
A visit by Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, the highest elected law enforcement official in the state, provided CMU students with direct access to the person who oversees law enforcement training in the Centennial State. Weiser, who spent the morning visiting with CMU students, also joined President Tim Foster for a conversation as part of the Turning the Corner on Racism committee's Let's Talk About It video series. Before leaving campus, the attorney general also hosted a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials from Grand Junction, Mesa County, Montrose, Fruita and the Town of Palisade.
Directly following the killing of George Floyd, Foster and Head Football Coach Tremaine Jackson began working with student leaders and faculty and started a committee to address racism and discrimination. Today the group is led by diversity coordinator Ky Oday and includes faculty, staff and several clubs and student organizations.
From the first meeting the committee established that it wanted to focus on measurable problems that could be identified and addressed. Their first effort was the renaming of an athletic stadium on campus that had historical connections to a hate group. After successfully renaming the facility the taskforce, along with Weiser, is turning efforts towards creating a permanent conversation with regional law enforcement. The meeting with Weiser was the first step in the effort.
Among the topics discussed were bias, bigotry, education standards for law enforcement officers, gun violence, and training and creating diversity within the law enforcement profession.
