Mizzou Athletics Introduces MACIE - Mizzou Athletics Committee on Inclusive Excellence
6/25/2020 1:05:00 PM | General
MACIE will strive to advance and foster diversity and inclusiveness across Mizzou Athletics
COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has founded a new group to help advance and foster diversity and inclusiveness, announced Thursday by Director of Athletics Jim Sterk. The Mizzou Athletics Committee on Inclusive Excellence (MACIE) will strive to provide a welcoming environment for all Mizzou student-athletes, coaches and staff while focusing on four specific areas: training and education, hiring and recruiting practices, community and affinity groups, and MU inclusive excellence framework.
"This is a unique time in our nation and now, more than ever, we need courageous leadership," said Sterk. "Mizzou Athletics is committed to reckoning with the structural and systemic racism that Black people and undeserved/underrepresented coaches, staff and student-athletes have experienced over generations. We stand with our Black student-athletes, coaches and administrators and raise our collective voices together against racial intolerance because we believe Black Lives Matter."
Inclusive Excellence Framework was adopted by the UM System in June 2017, and led to a call by system leadership to the chancellors of all four institutions to draft specific plans ensuring Inclusive Excellence on their campuses. With the goal of embedding diversity, inclusion and equity into the fabric of MU, it is metric-driven, requiring the university's units to use data to measure effectiveness of their programs and practices. Since that time, MU Athletics has answered the call, developing a pair of its own programs to fit into the framework to guide substantive and systemic change—SAFE (Student-Athletes Fostering Equality) in 2018 and MACIE.
MACIE's goal is to serve as an entry point into making real change across Mizzou Athletics relative to inclusion through greater dialogue, increased knowledge and awareness, and diversification of its staff.
"Mizzou Athletics Committee on Inclusive Excellence is focused on implementing real change in hiring and recruiting practices, diversity and inclusion training and education, and further integrating practices and policies that values and respects everyone," Brown said. "We have heard from our student-athletes and coaches that it is time to act.
"MACIE will use its collective platforms through coaches, staff, and senior administrators to lead with courage creating inclusive communities with greater dialogue on race, increased knowledge and awareness of racial inequities, and focused diversification of our staff," he added. "We understand, for change to be sustainable, it has to be personal."
In support of the committee's mission, MACIE will be comprised of coaches, staff and administrators appointed by Sterk and Brian Brown, MU's Deputy Director of Athletics/Mizzou Made, Integrated Health Care & Inclusion for three-year terms. MACIE committee members will serve, develop and support departmental goals and initiatives that promote diversity and foster both a culture and an environment of inclusion.
MACIE Committee Members:
- Brian Brown – Deputy Athletics Director, Mizzou Made, Integrated Healthcare and Inclusion
- Cornell Mann – Assistant Coach, Men's Basketball
- Rohrk Cutchlow – Assistant Athletics Director, Athletic Performance and Sports Science
- Brick Haley – Assistant Coach - Defensive Line, Football
- Jonathan Holden – Media Producer
- Martin Solomon – Director of Academics, Football
- Debbie Wright – Counseling Psychologist
- Tami Chievous – Associate Athletics Director, Academics
- Pam Bruzina – Faculty Athletic Representative
- Alison Mosel – Athletic Trainer
- Scotta Morton – Assistant Athletics Director, Mental Performance & Psychological Services
- Stephanie Priesmeyer – Head Coach, Women's Golf
- Dawn Malone – Associate Director of Athletic Performance
- Natasha Brown – Associate Head Coach – Track and Field
- Ashleen Bracey – Assistant Coach, Women's Basketball
- Jasmine Johnson – Assistant Director of Development
- Chris Wooten – Head Coach, Women's Tennis
- Nick Joos – Deputy Athletics Director, Communications
- Scott Hovey – Graduate Assistant, Student-Athlete Development
- Max Molz – Assistant Director of Operations, Football
- Josh McPherson – Director of Sports Fields
- Adam Kiel – Assistant Athletics Director, Student-Athlete Development
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