Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion Dr. Reginald Stewart presented progressive steps toward campus climate improvement at the Graduate Program Student Senate.

This December marks two years working at Iowa State for Stewart, and he’s making major progress on campus.

This includes the establishment of a Mindfulness Room, a retreat for students to de-stress. 

“The purpose is for people to relax and clear your mind, but it is not intended for sleeping,” said Stewart. “People are encouraged to turn off their electronic devices, there are no computers, and students can clear their head.”

He is also introducing a new campus climate portal, acting as a source for communication between administration and students. 

“The portal is designed to help people access information, particularly as far as campus climate,” said Stewart. “If we are going to post a statement, wether that be from the president, or etc. it will be right there. This will not eliminate the mass email communication, this is a way to now access that.”

On top of that, Stewart is starting the Campus Climate Response Team (CCRT) for incident report filtration. 

“The problem is you guys run to social media with issues on campus, and this process will help walk you through an incident.”

The CCRT is a source to filter out incident reports and to get students sent to the correct resource. Wether that be on campus organizations, the police, or so on, it will help guide users to someone who can help them more easily.

Stewart is seeking feedback in regards to campus climate here at Iowa State and will be doing a campus climate survey. This is the first time we’ve done a survey since 2004, and Stewart hopes more recent data will provide a better understanding of current student life, to help address any problems or concerns.

“Within your spheres of influence, communicate your experience. Some of you are having a fantastic time at Iowa State. Some of you are having a difficult time. When you go to this survey, you have a voice.”

Students aren’t Stewart’s only responsibility. He is forming a five month project to help the new president hit the ground “knowing.”

“We asked ourselves, How can we best support the next president? So we’re creating a document for him, and the voice is not just mine. Its a series of topics of things that are important, and when he walks through the door we say ‘here you go.’ Because we want him to feel prepared, and hit the ground ‘knowing’.”