In July 2020, Chancellor Nasser H. Paydar appointed a campus-wide committee titled the IUPUI Committee on the Review of Building and Structure Names. The purpose of this committee is to assist the IUPUI campus in researching and analyzing information about our named buildings and structures for the purpose of ensuring that those for whom such entities are named reflect the values held by the IUPUI campus community.
IUPUI’s strategic plan calls for us to “develop and maintain an unapologetically equitable and inclusive campus culture that ensures the academic and professional success of historically minoritized and marginalized students, staff, and faculty, and actively promote the benefits of such a culture.” While considerable strides have been made toward this goal—through efforts such as the Welcoming Campus Initiative and programs led by the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and the Office for Women—there is considerably more work to do. Engaging in a review of IUPUI’s named buildings and structures is a natural, appropriate evolution of this work.