This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
By Finding aid prepared by Bryce Henry and Elizabeth Nielsen.
Title: Affirmative Action Office Records, 1971-2010
Predominant Dates: 1985-2000
ID: RG 172
Primary Creator: Oregon State University. Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity
Extent: 18.5 cubic feet. More info below.
Arrangement: The Affirmative Action Office Records are arranged in 5 series: 1. Subject Files, 1971-2009; 2. Affirmative Action Plans, 1971-1991; 3. Policies and Procedures, 1981-1999; 4. Reports, 1976-1998; and 5. Publications, 1977-2010.
Languages of Materials: English [eng]
The Affirmative Action Office Records document the development and implementation of affirmative action and equal employment opportunity programs at Oregon State University, especially with regard to women, ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans. The records include subject files, affirmative action plans, policies and procedures, reports, and publications. The Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity was established at Oregon State University in 1972.
Access to the Department of Education Office of Civil Rights materials in Series 1 is restricted due to the presence of confidential information. All requests for access to this material should be directed to the University Archivist.
The Affirmative Action Office Records document the development and implementation of affirmative action and equal employment opportunity policies, plans, and programs at Oregon State University, especially with regard to women, ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans. The records include correspondence, handbooks, meeting minutes, newspaper clippings, notes, overhead transparencies, photographs, policies and procedures, publications, reports, speeches, and survey records.
The collection includes substantive materials pertaining to athletics compliance, civil rights, domestic partner policies, gender equity, grievance procedures, harassment, racism, recruitment and retention of minority students, sexism, and sexual orientation. The records document the development of minority action plans for campus units; interactions with state and regional advocacy groups; university committees, such as the President's Commission on the Status of Women, Minority Affairs Commission, and Board of Visitors for Minority Affairs; collection of summary data on faculty, staff, and students at Oregon State; and presentations and training workshops.
Most of the materials in this collection reflect Stephanie Sanford's tenure as Director of the OAAEO in 1987-2000. Beyond the correspondence, reports, and policies generated by Sanford, the collection includes several speeches she gave as well as her published articles.
The collection includes 5 photographic prints of Affirmative Action staff at a staff retreat in 1996.
An addition to the Affirmative Action Office Records (Accession 2012:005) consists of materials generated by the Office of Affirmative Action that is primarily made up of Affirmative Action Plans and annual reports, but also includes VHS videotapes and sound recordings. Compiled annually and biennially (for a few years), the plans include supplemental information on the workforce at OSU statistically broken down by position, department, gender, race, and other factors. Numbering 19 tapes in total, the VHS videotapes contain recordings of a variety of campus presentations, programs, and events relating to racism at colleges and the encouragement of a diverse student body and faculty. These include a lecture by Bill Wassmuth of the Northwest Coalition against Malicious Harassment, the opening of the Multicultural Affairs Office, programs about Native Americans at OSU, and a forum by the OSU group Faculty and Professional Staff of Color. The sound recordings consist of 15 cassettes of audio recordings mostly from non-OSU conference presentations on the topics of multiculturalism, mentoring, and faculty response to diversity at colleges.
A second addition to the Affirmative Action Office Records (Accession 2013:017) consists of materials that reflect the work of the University Advisory Committee on Persons with Disabilities and the Parking Committee. There are also reference and teaching materials documenting the two seminars: Difference, Power, and Discrimination and "Recruiting Faculty from Historically Underrepresented Groups."
A third addition to the Affirmative Action Office Records (Accession 2013:090) is made up of materials generated and collected by the Office of Affirmative Action and is made up of correspondence, handbooks, meeting minutes, newspaper clippings, notes, policy statements, publications, reports, survey materials, and VHS videotapes. The bulk of this transfer is described as correspondence/subject files containing a combination of reference materials from non-OSU sources and documentation about university policies and their ongoing development. Subjects reflected in these files include: American with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance, sexual harassment, faculty diversity, salary equity, religious expression, hate speech, legislation, and laws regarding affirmative action. Other materials in this accession include Title IX compliance review records and reports with statistics on women and minority student enrollment at OSU. Numbering 11 in total, the videotape recordings pertain to minority student and faculty recruitment, compliance with ADA regulations, and sexual harassment prevention. The tapes also document lectures about the Brown vs. Board court decision, coming out, and the quest to achieve racial harmony.
Oregon State University's Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity (OAAEO) was founded in 1972 to ensure that all University community members uphold federal and state civil rights laws and regulations as well as the University's equal opportunity policies.
The OAAEO manages the University's affirmative action and equal opportunity efforts by establishing policies and procedures and by evaluating hiring and recruitment practices. The office investigates and resolves discrimination complaints and coordinates the University's obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The OAAEO also offers training and education on a variety of topics related to affirmative action and equal opportunity.
Directors of the Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity have included Ronald McClain (1973-1975); Pearl Spears Gray (1976-1987); Stephanie Sanford (1987-2000); and Angelo Gomez (2000-).
Accruals: Additions to the collection are expected.
More Extent Information: 5 photographs, 30 VHS videotapes and 15 audiocassettes; 21 boxes
Statement on Access: Access to the Department of Education Office of Civil Rights materials in Series 1 is restricted due to the presence of confidential information. All requests for access to this material should be directed to the University Archivist. All other materials in this collection are open for research.
Acquisition Note: The records were transferred to the University Archives in numerous accessions from 1991 through 2010; the bulk of the records were transferred in 2007.
Related Materials: The Affirmative Action Office Records are a component of the Oregon Multicultural Archives. Additional materials pertaining to affirmative action at Oregon State University are available in the records of the President's Office (RG 013), President's Commission on the Status of Women (RG 159), Women's Center (RG 243), Associated Students of OSU (RG 011), and Office of Multicultural Affairs (RG 225) as well as the Memorabilia Collection (MSS MC). The records of many colleges, academic departments, and administrative offices include affirmative action plans for those units.
Preferred Citation: Affirmative Action Office Records (RG 172), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.
Oregon State University. Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity
Gray, Pearl Spears
Sanford, Stephanie
Affirmative action programs--Oregon--Corvallis--Handbooks, manuals, etc.
Affirmative action programs in education--Oregon--Corvallis.
Diversity in the workplace--Oregon--Corvallis.
Domestic partner benefits--Oregon--Corvallis.
Faculty integration--Oregon--Corvallis.
Gay college students--Oregon--Corvallis.
Minorities--Employment--Oregon.
Minority college students--Oregon.
Minority college teachers--Oregon--Corvallis.
Oregon Multicultural Archives
Oregon State University--Administration.
Oregon State University--Faculty.
Oregon State University--Sports.
Oregon State University--Students.
Oregon State University. Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity
Oregon State University. President's Commission on the Status of Women
People with disabilities--Employment--Oregon--Corvallis.
Sex discrimination in sports--Oregon--Corvallis.
Sexual harassment in universities and colleges--Oregon--Corvallis.
Sports for women--Oregon--Corvallis.
University History
Women--Education (Higher)--Oregon--Corvallis.
Women athletes--Oregon--Corvallis.
Audiocassettes.
Born digital.
Photographic prints.
Series 1 comprises the bulk of the collection and documents the functioning and programs of the Affirmative Action Office at Oregon State University. The subject files include correspondence, reference materials, presentations, speeches, meeting minutes and committee records, and newspaper clippings. The records document affirmative action in employment of women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans as well as civil rights, harassment, sexism, recruitment and retention of minority students, domestic partner policies, grievance procedures, and athletics compliance.
Access to the Department of Education Office of Civil Rights materials in Series 1 is restricted due to the presence of confidential information. All requests for access to this material should be directed to the University Archivist.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.