Reflecting on his arrival at Amherst in 2016, Norm Jones, chief equity and inclusion officer, says that “Amherst believed enrollment was our focus. But it’s not enough to increase access for Black and brown students. We have to focus on their experience after the moment of enrollment.”
The Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship, a national grant pursued by Jones and secured by the College in 2018 (see “Ph.Diversity,” Spring 2019), is one way to do that. Its mission is to address underrepresentation in college and university faculty by funding and mentoring undergraduates on their way to careers in academia.
“It is not a foregone conclusion in the mind of the academy that Black and brown students will pursue Ph.D.s and diversify the professorate,” Jones says. “It can’t be left to chance. We have to hardwire the system by making sure they begin their course of action as undergraduates.”
MMUF alums then, ideally, go on to diversify institutions of higher education—not only by their presence but also by contributing to scholarship in which certain voices have been historically silenced. As MMUF scholar Djelimory Diabate ’21 puts it, “The question for me is: What is this knowledge for? That’s something that drives the purpose of getting an education.”
If it sounds aspirational, it’s not. Or not only. Because MMUF is less a self-congratulatory celebration of diversity than a material proposition of equity. And it’s not just about what the students might do—it’s about what they’re doing now: how they’re thinking and thriving and changing Amherst in the process.
“Over half of our student body is students of color,” says Jones. But there are dynamics that can obligate some students—especially those who hold marginalized identities—to lead triple lives: “You can be one way in the classroom, then outside you can be more authentic, and at home you can be fully authentic,” Jones says. “That requires psychological, emotional and physiological labor that ultimately chips away at your experience. But when you have a Rosemary in your life, you know there’s a space where you can bring all of that.”
He’s talking about Rosemary Effiom, the MMUF director at Amherst. Three years into the program—15 students altogether—Effiom is thrilled with the successes. The first cohort are heading to grad school, and the current seniors are applying to national fellowships and Ph.D. programs.
Chimaway Lopez ’20, a Ph.D. candidate in Native American studies at UC Davis, identifies MMUF as a major factor in his decision to continue his education. “Beyond all the practical things, there’s the encouragement,” he says, “the whole network of people supporting each other.”