Equity Compliance Director Ensures All Voices are Equal

Freda Grant’s experience will help further SHU’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion

Sacred Heart University’s new director of institutional equity compliance & support, Freda Grant, brings to SHU a wealth of experience in public policy and gender studies along with expertise in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) within higher education.

Her key responsibilities in her new position include overseeing the University’s discrimination harassment policy and procedures and managing SHU’s bias education support team. She will lead policy and procedure development for the University’s Office for Inclusive Excellence as she coordinates with departments that have antidiscrimination responsibilities, including human resources, Title IX, student accessibility and student conduct. She will also lead institution-wide policy and procedures review and development.

Grant is also taking on the responsibilities of the University’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act coordinator, who assures compliance with federal and state laws and regulations pertaining to people with disabilities.

Among her goals, she said she hopes to further SHU’s inclusive policies and practices, provide comprehensive and intersectional education initiatives and enhance support systems for marginalized groups in the Sacred Heart community.

Maurice Nelson, SHU’s chief diversity & inclusion officer, said Grant’s vast experience and knowledge of antidiscrimination policies will help her thrive at SHU. “Freda Grant brings a rich background in both experience and scholarship, with a focus on intersectionality and the nuanced ways in which individuals encounter discrimination and bias,” Nelson said. “Her expertise in guiding others through challenging conversations and processes of reintegration makes her exceptionally well suited for this role.”

In a question-and-answer interview, Grant discussed how her diverse and dynamic skill set will benefit SHU.

How will your previous experiences help you succeed in this role?

My experiences have prepared me to lead with a strategic focus on the curation of institutional antidiscrimination policies and procedures that promote fairness, diversity and accountability. In my prior roles, I successfully developed and implemented comprehensive equity and inclusion programs that aligned with institutional goals. I am eager to grow as a practitioner of policy and equity compliance during my tenure at Sacred Heart.

What do you hope to accomplish in your new position?

The first thing I would like to accomplish is establishing a rapport with the members of our campus community while earning the trust of the students, staff and faculty. It is important to me that our campus views me as an accessible resource, which I wholeheartedly believe will lay the foundation for a fruitful working partnership.

What attracted you to working at Sacred Heart?

The top factors that attracted me to Sacred Heart are the University’s commitment to inclusion, its focus on community development and the close-knit, supportive campus. Regarding SHU’s DEI initiatives, the University’s commitment to cultivating safe and inclusive spaces for the members of the SHU community is admirable. The office for inclusive excellence has made wonderful strides in engaging Sacred Heart’s specific DEI needs. I am extremely excited to jump in, leave my imprint on campus and work with such a dynamic and intersectional team.

What makes your new position such an important role in today’s collegiate landscape?

The director of institutional equity compliance & support and ADA coordinator position is an integral role in today’s collegiate landscape because you are responsible for molding the modern collegiate environment into an accessible space that fosters inclusivity, diversity and equity while simultaneously shaping the minds of our emerging scholars and future community leaders. I view our colleges and universities as insular communities within our larger communities. With that in mind, it is our responsibility as a collective to cultivate and sustain safe spaces for one another. In my opinion, diversity, equity and inclusion are the foundation for doing so.