BSU Values - Equality for All - Page 5 of 9

On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution abolishing slavery, President Obama averred, "We betray the efforts of the past if we fail to push back against bigotry in all its forms ... To rise above the cynicism and rise above the fear, to hold fast to our values, to see ourselves in each other, to cherish dignity and opportunity not just for our own children but for somebody else's child."

Mindful of President Obama's call, and in response to national and global statements of intolerance and bigotry and acts of violence, the Bridgewater State University community has come together to reaffirm its own values of diversity, inclusion and equality for all. Initiated by a group of caring and committed BSU faculty, the community crafted a statement recommitting ourselves to these values. The president and chairman of the Board of Trustees worked together to present the statement to the Board, and, at its meeting on December 14, 2015, the Board unanimously adopted as an official statement of the university the following:

"In response to growing and widespread incivility, bigotry, and hostility, we, the undersigned members of Bridgewater State University, reaffirm the values of our community as a welcoming, compassionate, and intellectually rigorous learning, working, and living environment. We reject all forms of bias, discrimination, xenophobia, and violence. We re-commit ourselves to actions that put into practice our individual and institutional values of diversity, inclusion, and equality for all."

The President, Board of Trustees and the inaugural signatories of the statement now invite members of the Bridgewater State community to join with us in affirming our values by signing the statement below.