Last fall semester, a meeting was held in the basement of South Building. If you haven’t been, the basement of South Building is home to Diversity and Multicultural Affairs. Called DMA for short, the office is home to a passionate, intelligent staff dedicated to bettering the Carolina community through diversity.
This meeting was held by one staff member, in particular, who went out of her way to get her job done.
Her name is Taffye Benson Clayton, and she made sure that she had a deep understanding of what students needed throughout the four years she worked as the associate vice chancellor for Diversity and Multicultural Affairs and chief diversity officer here at UNC.
Her dedication to students is why, in the days leading up to a rally being held in solidarity with students at the University of Missouri, she held a meeting.
She intentionally sought out student leaders from across campus to elicit their thoughts and opinions regarding the climate on campus, and even kept the meeting “open” to maximize diversity.
Individuals from student government, the Black Student Movement, the Carolina Student Activities Board and the Real Silent Sam Coalition were in attendance.
Over 30 students stuffed themselves into her office. They climbed up on the windowsill, crammed together on the floor and filled each nook and cranny the office had.
Sitting behind her desk, she — an administrator at a top institution—invited 30 discouraged, passionate students into her space to listen. She met with them after hours, while her family waited at home. Instead of clocking out at 5 p.m. on the dot, she asked all 30 students their name, classification, and future plans — and ordered them pizza.
She knew and understood the significance of the Mizzou rally and called the meeting to ensure that her students’ desires were clear, and that she could accurately represent their interests with her colleagues.
