Dartmouth rolls out 'Institute for Black Intellectual and Cultural Life'

Dartmouth College has unveiled its new Institute for Black Intellectual and Cultural Life (IBICL) as part of its institutional strategic plan for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The institute will focus on research topics such as “slavery and justice, arts and activism, climate change, and histories of race at Dartmouth.” Housed on the second floor of the Haldeman Center, IBICL will also help mentor black students, engage with black alumni and better relations between Dartmouth and surrounding communities of color.

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Kimberly Juanita Brown has been selected as the first director of the institute. 

The associate professor of English and creative writing, who joined the Dartmouth faculty in 2020, wants the institute to be “a thriving arena for the work of the Black diaspora.” Before IBICL’s founding, Brown was co-director of the Consortium of Studies in Race, Migration, and Sexuality. She earned her doctorate in African American studies, with a certificate in women’s, gender, and sexuality studies.

IBICL is strategic action number 7 in Darthmouth’s multi-year equity plan called “Toward Equity: Aligning Action and Accountability” or TEAAA. In 2022, Dartmouth committed to establishing an institute that “serves as a critical convener and nexus point for the creative, cultural, and scholarly expression of the Black community.” Other strategic actions include providing DEI training and education for all administrative leaders, creating a way Dartmouth can right its historical wrongs to marginalized groups, and recruiting diverse faculty and staff.

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The Institute for Black Intellectual and Cultural Life garnered $2.3 million– one million from individual donors such as alumni and families and another $1.3 million from the Office of the Provost. With this funding, IBLCL intends to provide “grants for Dartmouth faculty who are undertaking major research and creative projects related to the Institute’s research themes.” It also “sponsors initiatives, projects, and programming that anticipate and shape trends in the pursuit of knowledge production and social justice,” according to its website.

All individuals in this article have been contacted for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.

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