Bakersfield College started the Equal Opportunity Diversity Advisory Committee, or EODAC, for students that are African American or POC. EODAC committed themselves to be reactive, active, and proactive about pointing out and discussing racism in Bakersfield College.

The EODAC had four goals in mind. First, to have a racial equity student success agenda which allows Black and Latinx students to reach their academic goals and to be successful. They want to spread collective consciousness allowing for BC faculty and staff to participate in USC Racial Equity Institutes, equity-minded culturally competent professional development, curation of resources on race and cultural competence, and community engagement in dialogue and action for racial equity to deepen their understanding.

Faculty and staff diversification is important for college students to see that people who look just like them are also working on their campus and know that they are able to relate to the staff. Lastly, race-conscious first responder training. BC has partnered with our local law enforcement to help build up its equity-minded and culturally informed police academy curriculum.

The committee’s biggest goal was to diversify the campus by shaping the cultural and institutional policies that commit to students, staff, and faculty.

Bakersfield College’s Core Value of Diversity declares that “We insist that diversity be valued and promoted, recognizing that multiple perspectives lead to better education and knowledge of the world; listening and witnessing different experiences helps us to understand and contextualize power and privilege related to gender, race, class, religion, disability, and sexuality in terms of access and barriers to resources and opportunities.”

The committee has been part of Bakersfield College for decades. The EODAC has been progressing and evolving to ensure that African American and POC students are able to be part of a diverse campus. The committee holds meetings every third of each month. If you would like more information on the EODAC and how to become a student representative, visit the BC website.