‘A place where you belong, not just in words but in action’: UTM initiative champions Black excellence 

Black at UTM, a growing initiative at U of T Mississauga, is nurturing Black flourishing on campus, ensuring community members feel seen, celebrated and supported. 

The need for common spaces on campus for Black belonging came well before its official establishment in 2023, mostly via informal meetings and get-togethers to help new staff and students connect, says Heather Hines, director of office in the Office of the Vice-President and Principal at U of T Mississauga. 

The start of COVID-19 put those gatherings to a halt. The establishment of U of T’s Anti-Black Racism Task Force and the university’s commitment to create Black inclusive spaces – outlined in the task force’s final report of action-oriented measures to promote Black inclusion and excellence across the tri-campus – solidified the need for an initiative like Black at UTM. 

Since then, the initiative hasn’t stopped to accelerate efforts for the campus’ Black community. This includes establishing awards to honour the impact of Black student change-makers, working with hospitality and catering services to offer more diverse menu options from the African and Caribbean cultures, and partnering with UTM Communications to highlight the contributions of Black students, faculty, staff and librarians. 

“I can’t tell you how many asks we get in our inbox; things that we never anticipated that we were going to get, requests for partnerships that we never thought we would get,” Hines says.

“The outcome of all the work we’ve put into the initiative is building up. We’ve got this force that is propelling us forward at this point.”

The umbrella initiative is composed of three operational pillars: the Office of Black Initiatives, which facilitates the administration of Black at UTM; the Black Leadership Advisory Committee, which works towards the professional development, education and advancement of Black staff; and, the Anti-Black Racism Operational Group, a campus-specific response to the university’s commitments, which guides the implementation of the 58 task force recommendations.

Along with Hines, Black at UTM is led by Martin Kengo, manager of Black Initiatives. Eileen Waweru, special projects officer in the Project Management Office & Office of the Vice-President & Principal, also helped drive the initiative in her previous role as coordinator of Black Initiatives. 

The Black at UTM Strategic Framework is a roadmap for university leaders, community members, faculty, and staff to address anti-Black racism in concrete ways. It outlines seven priorities centered on collaboration and belonging, which is a pillar of the campus’ strategic framework. They include supporting community engagement and dialogue; funding initiatives against anti-Black racism and facilitating data-formed decision-making, to name a few.

The initiative has even developed a resource to keep everyone on track.

The UTM Black Inclusion and Excellence Dashboard is an open-access tool developed to ensure a transparent and accountable process of UTM’s responses to the Anti-Black Racism Task Force recommendations across its various campus divisions, departments, and units. Users can navigate the dashboard based on academic or administrative department, identify the progress of pertinent recommendations and activities, and can even see the last time a page was updated. 

Read more: How UTM is combatting anti-Black racism and catalyzing progress

“Having access to this information provides the U of T community a unique opportunity to start conversations on how to broaden the reach of the activities tracked and innovate ways of implementing the anti-Black racism commitments at the university,” Waweru says. 

“We have the opportunity to expand and broaden our reach beyond the baseline of the 58 commitments to make it consistent with what is currently happening in the environment.”

Waweru says that in conversations with the campus community, one key issue raised was the need for funding resources to propel activities to deepen inclusion. 

Established in 2023, the Black Opportunities Fund, administered through Black at UTM, provides campus divisions, departments, and units support toward efforts that elevate Black excellence and inclusion. To date, $22,000 has been awarded to such initiatives. 

Initiatives supported by the Black Opportunities Fund includes a student-organized Black History Month celebration, the recently launched interim Black Student Space and numerous mental health and wellness programs for staff and students. More than $6,000 was also awarded to the Black Access to Educational Excellence (BAEE@UTM) program. The program invites high school students to attend a semester on campus and realize options for post-secondary education.

Black at UTM also organizes reoccurring programs curated to advance personal and professional development for Black-identifying staff, including Uzima Wednesday Walks and Inua Thursday Mentorship Circles. Earlier this year, the inaugural Black Excellence and Flourishing Summit brought together 35 Black-identifying UTM staff to discuss professional development, engagement, and promoting visibility on campus. 

Kengo emphasizes that while the initiative fosters a sense of community and belonging, achieving concrete systemic changes requires collective commitment and accountability from everyone.

“We want people to know that here is a place where you are welcomed, where you belong, not just in words, but in action,” Kengo says. 

The Black Leadership Advisory Committee is facilitating community engagement and dialogue amongst allies and the broader campus population to discuss the recruitment and retention of Black faculty and staff. Kengo notes that this is vital to ensure that equity-driven initiatives and policies are championed and maintained. 

He hopes the work being done by Black at UTM serves as a model for the broader campus community and can act as a blueprint for similar initiatives across the tri-campus.

As Black at UTM continues to expand its impact, the team hopes that future and current campus community members know that they have a support system to thrive at UTM.

“Our promise is to drive change here at the University of Toronto Mississauga and ensure that policies and practices are reflective of the commitment by the university to challenge anti-Black racism and to support Black flourishing and inclusive excellence,” Kengo says.