Standing Together | MIT Sloan

Smart = Open + Inclusive

We know actions speak louder than words. That knowledge is embedded in MIT's motto, mens et manus, or mind and hand. We're not just about ideas. We're about doing the work to turn ideas into impact.

That's why these pages contain not only heartfelt statements of support for our friends and colleagues of color, but also examples of the research our faculty members are doing right now, investigating ways to recognize and eliminate bias and amplify workers' voices. You'll also find courses for MIT Sloan students to explore topics of diversity and inclusion across management disciplines, resources to support all members of our community, and a list of ways to take action right now to drive positive change.

Reminder: Not Business As Usual

August 31, 2020

To the MIT Sloan community,

After a busy summer, the MIT Sloan campus is bustling with activity as we prepare to welcome students safely back to class. Campus reopening is foremost in many of our minds, yet recent events in Kenosha, Wisconsin remind us of the racial injustice faced by so many in this country. When police shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back, we were stunned and saddened. We asked again: “When will enough be enough?”

We write to reassure you that the MIT Sloan community is not only mourning. And we are not only waiting for the day when enough is finally enough. We are continuing to take action to strengthen diversity and inclusion at MIT Sloan in the following tangible ways:

We are educating ourselves and each other about systemic racism and white privilege.
We have reached out to students, faculty, staff, and alumni to gather feedback on how to support diversity, equity, and inclusion across our community, including through the feedback from last winter’s staff focus groups with IBIS, a diversity consulting firm.
We are working with our faculty to increase diverse representation in our coursework.
We are exploring mechanisms to expand the pipeline of diverse candidates for our academic programs and for our faculty.
We are engaged in the process of hiring a Director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to support and accelerate our work in this area.
We are partnering with MIT on a strategic DEI plan that will impact the entire Institute.

We are proud of this work – and we acknowledge there is much more to be done.

People across the United States and around the globe are raising their voices in protest. The courage this requires, the relentless effort it takes, the resilient spirit it tests—these are an inspiration. At MIT Sloan, we stand in solidarity in the fight against injustice.

As we all prepare to begin the new semester, we invite you to join us in this work. Know that each one of you is welcome here, and a valued member of our community. We look forward to working with you today and every day to end systemic racism and make MIT Sloan—and the world—a better place.

In solidarity,

Dave, Ray, and Fiona

David C. Schmittlein

John C Head III Dean

Professor, Marketing

Learn More

Ray Reagans

Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Management

Academic Group:
Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Learn More

Fiona E. Murray

Associate Dean for Innovation and Inclusion

William Porter Professor of Entrepreneurship

Academic Group:
Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Learn More

Black Lives Matter

MIT Sloan finds its strength in its diversity. We stand with our community of color and invite all members of our community to use their voices as we work together to dismantle systemic racism

Read A statement from the Black Business Students Association

July 2, 2020

As I shared in my message two weeks ago, MIT Sloan is taking concrete steps forward to continue to build a diverse and inclusive community at the school. Today, I write following President Reif’s email to reiterate that we at MIT Sloan share MIT’s commitment to eliminating systemic racism. I hope and anticipate that many students, staff, and faculty will participate in these efforts at the Institute level and at MIT Sloan.

As a school, we have already moved our work forward in several important ways:
- MIT Sloan has committed $5 million in new endowed funds to establish the MIT Sloan Endowment for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Over the next two years, the school will match all endowed gifts for fellowship aid to expand diversity within our student population, to support diversity and inclusion in our curricular and community-building efforts, and to help fund at least one staff position in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion. I am happy to report that, through this match and combined with the $5 million commitment from MIT Sloan, we already have $6 million total in endowed assets. This new funding builds on previous gifts given to foster diversity at MIT Sloan.
- Related to the establishment of this new endowment, I am pleased to announce that we are launching a search for a Director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. This search will be led by Associate Deans Ray Reagans and Fiona Murray, in partnership with Kelly Imberman, Executive Director of Human Resources. They are currently interviewing search firms and crafting the job description. We will select the search firm and begin the search by the end of July. If you know of possible candidates, please share their information with Ray, Fiona, and Kelly.
- Additionally, Ray and Fiona have begun the process of considering how the school can expand its faculty and student pipeline to include a wider range of diverse candidates. This week they met with INFORMS, the leading international association for operations research and analytics professionals, about faculty pipeline development. Further, they have begun outreach to our peer schools. Faculty diversity stems from our and our peer schools’ ability to attract diverse candidates to our PhD programs, making collaboration critical to the pipeline development process.
- For our masters’ degree programs, Ray and Fiona have partnered with the MIT Sloan Admissions Office to review the pipelines for our programs and to support that team in their efforts to expand the diversity of our student body. Additionally, the Black Business Students Association, the Hispanic Business Club, and the Africa Business Club have, in consultation with Ray and Fiona, shared perspectives on the potential concerns of prospective students from underrepresented populations with the hope of creating an admissions process that addresses and ameliorates those concerns and ultimately encourages those students to apply and, upon admission, choose to join our community. I know Ray and Fiona look forward to sharing ongoing updates on these efforts.
My hope is that, even in this time of crisis and uncertainty, we will maintain the momentum of the past several months to build a more inclusive and diverse MIT Sloan. As I hope the commitments above indicate, we will not let our energy for this work wane. Many of you have provided thoughtful feedback, suggestions, and responses to the work done to date, and offered creative ideas for moving these important efforts forward. As always, your engagement is not only welcome but crucial. True to its mission, the MIT Sloan community is taking action to make change for the better both here in Cambridge and around the world.
Thanks to each of you for joining us in the critically important work of abolishing systemic racism.

David Schmittlein | John C Head III Dean

Read Dean Schmittlein's June 15, 2020 letter to the community

Smart Enough to Know We're Smarter Together

Statement of support from Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Ray Reagans and Associate Dean for Innovation and Inclusion Fiona Murray:

We applaud the members of the Black Business Students Association at MIT Sloan in their efforts to bring us together as a community. We are a community struggling to find its voice during these difficult times. Unsure of what is appropriate to say. How can we comfortably talk about race and inequality? We cannot. But these are the difficult conversations a viable community must be able to have.

We view our new platform as an opportunity to give voice to members of our community who want to be heard and who wish to share in a conversation. We do not presume to be the voice for any one community at MIT Sloan. We have a megaphone. We want you to use it. You should know we stand by you. We listen to your advice. We act on your behalf.

One MIT Sloan

Groups from around the MIT Sloan community support our Black students and pledge to fight alongside them to end institutional racism.

Read their statements here

Which program is right for you?🔗

Executive Programs

Diversity + Inclusion

Smart = Open + Inclusive

Reminder: Not Business As Usual

David C. Schmittlein

Ray Reagans

Academic Group:
Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Fiona E. Murray

Academic Group:
Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Black Lives Matter

Smart Enough to Know We're Smarter Together

One MIT Sloan

Smart = Open + Inclusive

Reminder: Not Business As Usual

David C. Schmittlein

Ray Reagans

Academic Group: Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Fiona E. Murray

Academic Group: Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Black Lives Matter

A Letter to the MIT Sloan Community from Dean Schmittlein [July 2, 2020]

Smart Enough to Know We're Smarter Together

One MIT Sloan

Academic Group:
Behavioral and Policy Sciences

Academic Group:
Behavioral and Policy Sciences