University of California President Mark G. Yudof has named 17 members of his Advisory Council on Campus Climate, Culture and Inclusion, which will work closely with a UC Board of Regents committee to address challenges in enhancing and sustaining a tolerant, inclusive environment on each of the university’s 10 campuses.

The Advisory Council includes the presidents of the California NAACP and Skirball Cultural Center, the director of religious affairs for the Islamic Center of Southern California, a veteran civil rights activist now with the Four Freedoms Fund, the director of the Latino Center for Medical Education and Research, the legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights and the chair of the systemwide UC Academic Senate’s University Committee on Affirmative Action and Diversity. The other 10 affiliated members named come from UC’s 10 campuses and include student representatives.

The 18-member Council chaired by Yudof will identify, evaluate and share “promising practices” at other institutions across the state and nation, and monitor and evaluate the progress of each campus toward ensuring conditions that support the university’s mission and provide equal opportunities for all UC students, faculty and staff.

Reflecting on the broad and diverse points of view represented by the members, Yudof said, “This council will bring us experience and reason – voices that will help enrich our campus climate so that every single member of the UC community feels welcome, comfortable and safe.

“The issues we examine and the resolutions we achieve with the council apply not only to the students. We want students, faculty, staff and the local communities around the campuses all to have the opportunity to participate in a nurturing and stimulating environment.”

The appointment of the Council on Campus Climate, Culture and Inclusion follows a series of highly charged racial, religious and cultural incidents during the past year on several UC campuses.

Each appointed member, except for the student members, agreed to serve a three-year term ending June 30, 2013. Upon graduation, each student member will be replaced by another student.

The council will meet for the first time the afternoon of June 30 at the UC Office of the President and provide regular reports and updates to the Regents Ad Hoc Committee on Campus Climate, chaired by Regent Eddie Island.

Locally constituted Climate Councils on each campus will set metrics, monitor progress and report regularly to the systemwide Advisory Council on Campus Climate, Culture and Inclusion.

In addition to Yudof, members of the Advisory Council on Campus Climate, Culture and Inclusion are:

M. Ines Boechat

Chair, University Committee on Affirmative Action and Diversity,

Systemwide Academic Senate

Professor, Department of Radiological Sciences, UCLA

Henry Der

Senior Program Officer, Four Freedoms Fund

Katherine A. Flores

Director, Latino Center for Medical Education and Research,

UCSF Fresno

Uri D. Herscher

President and CEO, Skirball Cultural Center

Alice A. Huffman

President, California NAACP

Imam Jihad Turk

Director of Religious Affairs, Islamic Center of Southern California

Shannon Price Minter

Legal Director, National Center for Lesbian Rights

David Stark

Executive Director, Stiles Hall, Berkeley, California

UC Berkeley Affiliated Member

Cheyenne Currall

Principal Officer, International Business Development,

UC Davis Health System

UC Davis Affiliated Member

Megan Braun

Undergraduate Student, President, ASUCI

UC Irvine Affiliated Member

Tyrone Howard

Associate Professor, Urban Schooling

Graduate School of Education & Information Studies

UCLA Affiliated Member

Teenie Matlock

Founding Faculty and Associate Professor of Cognitive Science,

Cognitive and Information Sciences

UC Merced Affiliated Member

Yolanda T. Moses

Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Excellence & Equity, and Professor of

Anthropology

UC Riverside Affiliated Member

Jorge Mariscal

Professor, Department of Literature

UC San Diego Affiliated Member

Joseph I. Castro

Vice Provost - Student Academic Affairs & Special Assistant to the

Chancellor, Adjunct Professor of Family & Community Medicine

UC San Francisco Affiliated Member

Beth E. Schneider

Professor of Sociology and Chair, Santa Barbara Division Academic Senate

Committee on Diversity & Equity

UC Santa Barbara Affiliated Member

John Johnson

Graduate Student, President Graduate Student Association

UC Santa Cruz Affiliated Member

Jesse Bernal, who is at the end of his term as a student Regent, is serving as staff to the Advisory Council.

Steve Montiel

Media Relations Representative

University of California Office of the President

510-987-9157