Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

HHS Commitment:

• HHS is committed to an equitable, diverse, accessible, and inclusive community.
• We value diversity and inclusivity because we know that diversity in experiences and perspectives is vital to advancing innovation, critical thinking, complex problem solving, and the creation of a modern, representative academic community.
• The Department is committed to developing and maintaining a culture that is positive, collegial, and respectful of all members, and in which wellness and healthy work-life balance are valued - contributing to excellence in research and teaching.
• To develop an inclusive and vibrant Departmental culture, the Department maintains standing committees focused on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and Mental Health and Wellness and has implemented specific recommendations for faculty hiring that incorporate these important issues.

HHS EDI Committee’s Terms of Reference:

• HHS will be an equitable, diverse, and inclusive community.
• The HHS EDI committee is guided by the University of Guelph’s commitment to equity, diversity & inclusion.
• The committee will guide HHS in ensuring equitable opportunities and distribution of resources for all current and future students, staff, faculty and community members.
• The committee will enact change at the Department level by providing leadership and guidance across HHS activities and tying in with other EDI initiatives.
• The committee will be comprised of HHS members who are committed to EDI and ensuring broad representation.
• The committee aims to create a movement within HHS. We are committed to continuous reflection, learning, and growth and will model this culture.
• The committee recognizes the critical importance of truth and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples and the concerted focus this requires on EDI topics and beyond.
• The committee welcomes input and participation from racialized individuals and those of other equity seeking groups, and allies.
• The HHS EDI Committee exists to promote a culture of reflection, learning, and growth, with ripple effects beyond the Department.

HHS Scholarship for Academic Excellence

HHS recognizes the harms done by the residential school system, including nutrition and health experiments conducted on Indigenous children. The University of Guelph has long offered an endowed scholarship in the name of Lionel H. Pett who was an early contributor to the Canadian nutritional sciences community and who was involved in residential school nutrition research. Learning of this legacy in 2021, the HHS Chair and EDI committee embarked on a journey to deepen our understanding of this history and the ongoing harms caused by the hunger experiments in residential schools and other colonial practices in health research. One outcome has been to repurpose the Lionel H. Pett scholarship to support exceptional Indigenous students in the NANS, HK, and BIOMED degree programs. Thus, the HHS Scholarship for Academic Excellence was born. At the same time, we are committed to telling the truth about the endowment's history and the legacy of residential school experiments. We recognize this is but one small and imperfect step toward truth and reconciliation, and we are humbled by the work ahead. We offer this account as a commitment to continue uncovering and telling difficult truths, including within our own community, in the spirit of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.

Current Committee Members:

• Lori Vallis (lvallis@uoguelph.ca), Chair
• Christina Carusa - CBS Representative
• Bridget Coyle-Asbil
• Hannah Coyle-Asbil
• Kristen De Melo
• Julia De Oliveira
• Justine Keathley
• Amar Laila
• Anne Lovett-Hutchinson
• Michael McBurney
• Jen Monk
• Coral Murrant
• Katarina Osojnicki
• Laelie Snook

Please reach out if you want to get involved or if you have questions, suggestions or concerns of an EDI nature.