The City University of New York and LaGuardia Community College are dedicated to maintaining an inclusive work and learning environment, and I write to strongly reaffirm LaGuardia’s commitment, and my own commitment, to the principles of affirmative action, equal opportunity, and diversity.
It is the policy of The City University of New York and LaGuardia Community College to recruit, employ, retain, promote, and provide benefits to employees and to admit and provide services for students without discriminating on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, creed, national origin, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, marital status, partnership status, disability, genetic information, alienage, citizenship, military or veteran status, pregnancy, status as a victim of domestic violence/stalking/sex offenses, unemployment status, credit history, caregiver or familial status, prior record of arrest or conviction, or any other legally prohibited basis in accordance with federal, state and city laws.
Sexual harassment, including sexual violence, domestic/intimate partner violence, and gender-based harassment, forms of sex discrimination, are also prohibited by the City University of New York and LaGuardia Community College.
I invite you to visit the CUNY website to view the Policy in its entirety as well as the policies on Reasonable Accommodations and Academic Adjustments and Reporting of Alleged Misconduct.
The City University of New York, as a public university system, adheres to federal, state, and city laws and regulations regarding non-discrimination and affirmative action including among others Section 1324b of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), Executive Order 11246, as amended, Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, Section 402 of the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended, the Equal Pay Act of 1963, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, the New York State Human Rights Law and the New York City Human Rights Law.
The “protected classes,” as delineated in Executive Order 11246: (i.e. Black, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaskan Native and Women), were expanded on December 9, 1976 by the Chancellor of The City University of New York to include Italian-Americans. The U.S. Office of Management and Budget further expanded these protected classes in 2006 to include two or more races (not Hispanic or Latino) and replaced Asian/Pacific Islander, with Asian (not Hispanic or Latino) and Native Hawaiian (not Hispanic or Latino), Black was renamed as Black or African American (not Hispanic or Latino) and Hispanic was renamed Hispanic or Latino.
CUNY’s executives and administrators are responsible for maintaining a work environment free from discrimination and harassment, and for promoting diversity and inclusion in their units. Craig M. Greene is the responsible official charged with implementing affirmative action regulations. I encourage all vice presidents, deans, directors, managers, and supervisors who share in the responsibility for ensuring our compliance with these policies and laws to contact him to discuss diversity and inclusion strategies that would advance unit goals. Additionally, any individual who believes they have experienced employment discrimination should immediately contact Craig Greene at 718-482-5088 or email cgreene@lagcc.cuny.edu.
I ask for your continued support to ensure equal opportunity, affirmative action, diversity, and inclusion in all our employment practices.
Thank you,
Kenneth Adams
President
cc: Craig Greene, Executive Chief Diversity Officer/Title IX Coordinator/504-ADA Coordinator