University leaders created the Cabinet last spring to aid in collecting student feedback regarding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts around campus. The first official meeting between the Cabinet members and OU President Hugh Sherman will be Aug. 12.
According to a statement from OU, The Cabinet will meet monthly with several university officials. They will provide feedback on initiatives related to campus diversity, equity and inclusion.
The five founding members of the Cabinet are Dayna Shoulders, Jhasmin Glass, Kylie Duncan, Julian Ross and Giah Harper. They worked with the university to review applicants after the new membership application window closed May 20.
Shoulders said she believes the Cabinet will help with communication efforts between students and administrators.
"I think it'll benefit students on campus, specifically students of color by getting these ideas and real life experiences straight to the source," Shoulders said. "It's really easy for our experiences as students to kind of get muddled as it goes up the chain of command. But in this case, we'll be able to have in-depth discussions with administrators directly, who can solve our problems and allocate resources to exactly where we want them."
Dr. Salome Nnoromele, interim vice president for Diversity and Inclusion at OU, began working with the Cabinet in April.
"The application went to the student body… so everybody had the opportunity to apply," Nnoromele said. "Several students applied and then the five founding members, in addition to me and Dr. Bruce from the Division of Diversity and Inclusion, met and looked at all the applications. Then, we were able to select a level that had a broad representation of students from undergraduate to graduate to international students… so that every voice is represented (in the) Cabinet."
Shoulders said she believes as Student Senate president she is setting a precedent between the Senate's role as a voice for the student body and holding university leadership accountable for inclusivity on campus.
Following a string of racially-motivated incidents on campus during the spring 2022 semester, the university has placed a greater focus on diversity and inclusion efforts. The Visible Campaign, created last school year, highlights inclusion efforts on campus.
Nnoromele said the Cabinet's biggest focus is to bring in student voices from several populations of students on campus and present their feedback to university leadership.
All student representatives are currently Athens campus students. However Carly Leatherwood, a university spokesperson, said the Cabinet is also looking for regional campus student representatives.