In August 2020, AB 1460, the Ethic Studies Requirement (ESR), was signed by the Governor of California. This law stated that all 2–4-year higher education institutions, including the California State University (CSU) campuses must have an ethnic studies class that undergraduates are required to take for graduation. Consequently, the Chancellor’s Office of the CSU and its Systemwide Digital Library Content (SDLC) team, asked a number of vendors to propose DEI resources for consideration in support of the ESR systemwide. Through this process CSU libraries and SDLC learned a great deal about the development of DEI resources. In addition, vendors had an opportunity to not only shine a light on existing and new resources, but also to elaborate on their processes for creating content and the importance of DEI to their organizations.
This panel discussion will pose several questions to three vendors, on matters related to DEI resources. The panel will examine how vendors identify, develop, and prioritize DEI content; and how they review, update or change indexing and search taxonomy. The panel will also discuss the challenges and opportunities faced in light of the growing demand for DEI resources. The panel will include representatives from three leading vendors, EBSCO, Gale, and ProQuest; who have been spearheading DEI efforts for decades.
DEI resources are in high demand for understanding and studying today’s complex and variegated society. They are essential resources in supporting changing curriculum and providing students with a broad view of differing cultures, outlooks, and experiences. What started as call for resource suggestions has developed into a collaborative and hopefully ongoing effort between a number of vendors and the largest public university system in the United States.
