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Our Commitment to DEI

Insight Into Diversity: Library Excellence in Access and Diversity Award 2025 Badge

SJSU King Library Receives Insight Into Diversity Magazine’s 2025 Library Excellence in Access and Diversity (LEAD) Award

The LEAD Award honors academic libraries’ programs and initiatives that encourage and support inclusive excellence and belonging across their campus. San José State University’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library will be featured, along with 33 other recipients, in the March 2025 issue of Insight Into Diversity.

"At the SJSU King Library, we believe diversity, equity, and inclusion programming is not just an initiative—it is a foundational commitment that underpins all of our work,” said Michael Meth, dean of the SJSU King Library. “This recognition reflects our library’s shared vision to create a truly inclusive academic space to empower every voice and foster collective growth and a sense of belonging."

The award recognizes SJSU King Library's commitment to anti-racism, guided by a dedicated Anti-Racism Assessment and Advocacy Committee comprised of a diverse group of staff and faculty who, over the past 18 months, transformed an initial DEI plan into a dynamic online dashboard featuring 49 recommendations to establish the library as an anti-racist library.

Read Press Release

DEI & Accountability Dashboard

As part of SJSU Library’s commitment to Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), the Anti-Racism Assessment and Advocacy Committee (ARAAC) developed the SJSU Library’s DEI & Accountability Dashboard. The dashboard summarizes and tracks these recommendations to ensure the Library’s accountability and transparency in developing a more anti-racist and inclusive environment. It is just one reflection of our commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). This dashboard, derived from committee recommendations, focuses on the following areas:

  • Budget
  • Leadership
  • Recruitment
  • Retention
  • Security
  • Student Assistants

Anti-Racism Assessment & Advocacy Committee

About The Committee

Mission & Charge

The Anti-Racism Assessment and Advocacy Committee (ARAAC) works directly to develop, support, and assess anti-racist and DEIA activities in the library. It also facilitates subcommittees, working groups and task forces around these efforts. Expected activities include:

  • Ensuring progress of recommendations and application of framework previously approved by the library.
  • Developing and building consensus for new recommendations, policies, and practices that help realize the goals of the library’s anti-racism goals.
  • Identifying new anti-racist and DEIA goals beneficial to the library and supporting progress towards those goals.
  • The Committee will report out activities at least once per term to the library at an all-library meeting.

Formation of the Committee

The work of the Anti-Racism Assessment Working Group (ARAWG) from 2020 - 2023 resulted in a library consensus for the establishment of an Anti-Racism Advocacy and Assessment Committee (ARAAC) to facilitate the progress of anti-racism and DEIA work as defined by the library’s series of Action Planning discussions leading to a collection of action steps.

Strategy and Process

The Committee will support the implementation of recommendations already approved by the library as proposed by ARAWG (See Dashboard) and will likely continue to propose recommendations and guide individuals, departments, and committees to develop and work on anti-racist and DEIA efforts. It also facilitates the creation and governance of new subcommittees, working groups, and task forces on anti-racism and DEIA topics and issues. Current anti-racism committees, such as the Anti-Racism Collection Working Group, will continue their work as autonomous subcommittees of the Committee.

Current Membership (2023 - 2025)

Previous Members (2021 - 2023)

  • Anamika Megwalu, Faculty Director of Library Instruction and Assessment 2021-2023
  • Sylvia Ruiz, Executive Assistant to the Dean 2021-2023
  • Erika Johnson, Institutional Repository & Digital Scholarship Coordinator, 2021 - 2022
  • Lesley Seacrist, Project & Communications Analyst, 2021 - 2022
  • Justin Villena, Student Computing & Media Services Coordinator, 2021 - 2022
  • DeeAnn Tran, Senior Assistant Librarian, 2021 - 2022
  • Karen Schlesser, Resources and Analytics, 2021 - 2022

Past Co-Chairs/ Chairs 

  • Neil Ordinario (Co-chair), Library Technology Coordinator (2021-2023)