Diversity at Trinity:
News Release: Multicultural Affairs Dean Appointed

 Trinity College
For immediate release

Trinity College Announces Appointment of First Dean of Multicultural Affairs

HARTFORD, Conn., May 27 - Trinity College today announced the appointment of Karla Spurlock-Evans to the newly created position of dean of multicultural affairs and director of affirmative action.

Spurlock-Evans, who will join Trinity on Aug. 1, comes from Northwestern University, where she has been associate dean of students and director of African-American student affairs since 1985.

At Trinity, Spurlock-Evans will become a member of President Evan S. Dobelle's senior staff. She will have a central leadership role in advancing Trinity's goals for diversity and multiculturalism and in implementing the initiatives that support them.

"It is clear both from her impressive experience and her deep personal commitment to helping organizations become more diverse and inclusive, that Karla will contribute immensely to the goal of weaving multiculturalism into the institutional fabric of Trinity College," Dobelle said.

Spurlock-Evans said she is looking forward to the challenge. "This position promises to be the most exciting I've ever held. There's a real sense of energy and movement at Trinity. The College is committed to diversifying its faculty, staff and student body, and it is open to embracing the challenges and enrichment that result when people of different backgrounds and cultural perspectives engage with one another," she said.

Prior to her tenure at Northwestern, Spurlock-Evans was the assistant dean of students at Lake Forest College from 1981-85 and was at Haverford College from 1977-80. At Haverford, she held several positions, including director of minority affairs, associate dean of the college, and affirmative action officer. She also taught history at Haverford and the State University of New York at Albany and has an extensive record of publication.

"I believe that Karla Spurlock-Evans will be an excellent addition to the community. Her experience will serve her well as she takes on the challenging task of being this institution's first ever dean of multicultural affairs," said J. Russell Fugett '01, the Student Government Association's president-elect. "I am confident that she will help Trinity to move more rapidly toward a diverse academic and social community free of ignorance and racism. I believe that she is the right person to challenge our community to do so."

Fugett served as president of Trinity's Multicultural Affairs Council this year and was a member of the search committee that recommended Spurlock-Evans to President Dobelle.

Spurlock-Evans grew up in Willimantic, CT, where she attended Windham High School. She then earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 1971 at Columbia University, where she graduated magna cum laude graduate and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Spurlock-Evans received a master's degree in American studies at Emory University in 1974.