Archives West Finding Aid

Primarily made up of correspondence, Series I also contains newspaper clippings, notes, publications, and reports. This series documents interaction between Phyllis Lee and OSU administrative units, academic departments, campus cultural centers, Corvallis city government, and regional ethnic and racial advocacy organizations such the Urban League of Portland. Topics reflected in this series include requests for Lee’s intervention as a consultant and mediator, campus diversity initiatives, support for student participation in off-campus conferences, accreditation, presentations by visiting scholars and activists on subjects of racism and culture, outreach projects to minority communities, an assessment survey on campus climate, minority action plans from various OSU departments and colleges, and the Office of Multicultural Affairs’ coordination of conferences and events highlighting student diversity.

Series II consists of materials generated by various university committees, commissions, and advisory boards and is made up of meeting minutes, correspondence, notes, reports, and publications. Topics reflected in this series include hate-related activities on campus, the recruitment and retention of students and color, gender equity in the NCAA, the OSU 2007 strategic planning process, cross cultural outreach, diversity in course development, and response strategies to racial incidents.

Series III documents Office of Multicultural Affairs staff meetings and is primarily made up of notes, but also includes correspondence, meeting agendas, and flyers.

In addition to annual summaries of Office of Multicultural Affairs' and Phyllis Lee's activities, the reports in Series IV include status reports on ethnic and racial diversity at OSU and the Oregon University System, OSU strategic planning documents, harassment response guidelines, updates on diversity initiatives at OSU, and a survey study on campus climate in Oregon.

Series V documents Phyllis Lee’s participation in classroom instruction and proposals for the development of new academic programs and departments. This series contains correspondence, grant proposals, handouts, presentation notes, publications, and syllabi.

Series VI documents scholarship programs for ethnic and racial minorities offered by OSU, the Oregon University System, and private institutions. In addition to correspondence, there are also blank applications, flyers, meeting minutes, notes, reports, and statistical data in this series.

Series VII pertains to presentations made by Lee for campus departments, student organizations, orientation of new faculty members, public schools, state agencies, companies, and new student orientation programs. Also documenting conference addresses and panelist participation at public forums, this series consists of correspondence, flyers, publications, and speech notes.

The clippings in series VIII relate to the establishment of the office and Lee’s appointment as director, the Difference, Power, and Discrimination Program, the OSU Cultural Centers, incidents of racism and homophobia, and diversity education events on campus. The articles and editorials were clipped from the Daily Barometer, Corvallis Gazette-Times, and the Oregonian.

Series IX is made up of notes taken by Phyllis Lee recording various meetings and interviews with faculty of color on campus and OSU administrators.

The subject files in Series X are comprised of materials originating from a variety of off-campus organizations and governmental agencies oriented toward human rights, racial advocacy, social services, and educational equity. Also documented in this series are conferences and workshops held at OSU and off-campus that were not organized by the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Made up of correspondence, publications, reports, and notes, these files also explore minority student statistical profiles, Martin Luther King Jr. Service Day, state legislation, and other universities’ diversity plans.

In addition to guides produced by the Office of Multicultural Affairs for advising Native American and other students of color, the publications in series XI include flyers for presentations and forums on multicultural issues and a handbook on child care published by the State of Oregon with editorial comments by Lee.

Series XII consists of an an undergraduate honors thesis, Opening Minds and Opening Doors for Students of Color at OSU, detailing the organizational structure of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and its role in serving as a hub for diversity programs at the university.

Series XIII documents Lee’s involvement in non-OSU committees, professional associations, governmental bodies, and advisory councils. The organizations represented in this series are primarily state and regional entities oriented toward diversity and educational development. In addition to meeting minutes and correspondence, this series also contains reports, notes, newspaper clippings, and conference materials.

Series XIV pertains to complaints of racial and ethnic harassment from students at OSU and local high schools that were received by Phyllis Lee. Documenting situations both on campus and off, this series includes correspondence, flyers, incident reports, newspaper clippings, notes, sketches, and a banner.

The photographs (color prints and negatives) depict a performance of various international dances including the Chinese “dragon dance” in a grand opening ceremony commemorating the establishment of the Office of Multicultural Affairs in 1991.