If there’s one thing Scott Vignos believes about advancing equity and justice, it’s that the work is a community effort. Since joining Oregon State in 2015, Vignos has been walking the walk, using his position as assistant vice president to conceptualize new diversity initiatives and advance the university’s mission to become a place where every person feels supported and at home. Read on to learn more about his vision for Oregon State.
What brought you to Oregon State?
I moved to Corvallis to start working at Oregon State in October of 2015. I was originally drawn here by my husband’s job — he’s an assistant professor in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences. I was incredibly fortunate to land a position in the former Office of Equity and Inclusion, working on issues related to civil rights compliance and other institutional equity initiatives. It was a perfect next step in my career, which has consistently focused on advancing equity and justice, whether in legal practice or in higher education.
What are your responsibilities as the assistant vice president for strategic diversity initiatives?
In my role, I contribute to the planning and implementation of strategic initiatives that advance diversity, equity and inclusion at Oregon State. I work closely with Charlene Alexander, our vice president and chief diversity officer, and the OID team to conceptualize new initiatives and advance the Office of Institutional Diversity’s strategic plan.
On a day-to-day basis, I meet and collaborate on programs and initiatives with partners from across the university and help develop and implement unit-level strategies that align our work with the incredible efforts taking place in the colleges and other units at Oregon State. I analyze data to examine inequities, assess efficacy and tell stories about our work. I also lead our Bias Response Team and develop strategies to proactively respond to bias incidents impacting Oregon State community members.
How does your study of law inform your work day to day?
My legal education has been very helpful in my position. In terms of substance, I frequently encounter subjects that I learned about in law school, including free speech and immigration. My training as a lawyer also informs how I approach asking hard questions, developing solutions and creatively overcoming obstacles.
What does an inclusive university look like? And how can we get there?
I love this question. I think an inclusive university looks like a place where students, faculty and staff feel like they belong and know they can succeed because the university, and their colleagues, support them and truly value their lived experience.
An inclusive university is continually creative, looking for new opportunities to create equity, while recognizing and reconciling historical and present inequities. How we get there starts with every Oregon State community member recognizing that they play a central role in this endeavor.
Diversity, equity and inclusion work is not limited to a particular office or community. It’s continual and iterative, and necessarily involves every community member contributing in their own way within their own sphere of influence. Whether as a student, dean, instructor, extension agent, coach, librarian or Ecampus administrator, we are all essential to this work at Oregon State.
Has OSU changed much since you first started working here?
I arrived at a time of important upheaval at Oregon State. A month after I started my job, students organized the Students of Color Speak Out, which served as an important catalyst to the progress we’ve made in the last three years.
Since that time, I have observed the university moving continually in the right direction. Outwardly, President Ray created our office, Dr. Alexander was hired as OSU’s first vice president and chief diversity officer, and our staff has grown to meet a range of needs – from delivering more comprehensive diversity education, to creating opportunities for dialogue, to using data and evidence to articulate and advance strategic equity goals, to building relationships with diverse external communities.
Most importantly, I have observed an amazing willingness within the Oregon State community to engage in hard conversations about hard topics to take steps toward creating a more equitable future. These conversations are necessary for true institutional change to take root, and we’re having them every day.
What do you envision for the future of OSU?
I am excited and hopeful about the future of OSU. We’re making advances in so many areas and creating new opportunities for excellence along the way. This path is never smooth. We’ll suffer setbacks and be faced with barriers that are out of our control. But we’re building incredible capacity to overcome adversity and work together as a community motivated by a pursuit of equity and justice. I’m very honored and humbled to be part of this work at Oregon State.