The FSU Office of Multicultural Affairs began as the Office of Minority Affairs in 1972, in response to the needs of minority students on the FSU campus. It reported directly to the FSU President, and was primarily responsible for the implementation of equal employment opportunity and affirmative action laws in employment. During the mid 1970s, that office was redesignated as the Office of Human Affairs, responsible for the development, implementation, and monitoring of FSU's Affirmative Action Program. In the late 1970s, FSU established the Office of Minority Student Affairs, whose first director, John Burt, also reported directly to the University President.
From the late 1970s through the early 1990s, the Office of Minority Student Affairs sponsored many activities and programs. These included the Black Student Leadership Conference and Unity Day Interfaith Services, designed to educate students about racial and ethnic diversity on campus, the Multicultural Student Support Center and Martin Luther King Scholarship and Loan Fund, and the SALSA (Student Affairs Linking Student Affairs) program with Costa Rica. The department also implemented guidelines that addressed issues with respect to minority students, such as non-discrimination, racism, and homophobia, published the Florida State University Statement on Values and Ethics and the Office of Minority Affairs newsletters, administered the Black Cultural Center and Horizons Unlimited (an academic retention program), and provided undergraduate tutoring by graduate students.
The FSU Office of Minority Student Affairs greatly expanded its activities and, according to Robin Leach, Associate Dean of Student Affairs, became the FSU Office of Multicultural Affairs about 1995. This department, part of the Division of Student Affairs, is committed to the philosophy that multiculturalism enhances the quality of student life, provides advocacy, support services, and culturally-based programs that educate students on diversity and multiculturalism. Its major goals are to help students as they explore their race or ethnicity, class, gender identity, nationality, disability, religion or spirituality, and sexual orientation, encourage opportunities for student collaboration on projects that explore these identities, and foster within the FSU community a respect and appreciation for the history, tradition, and cultures of all students.
From the guide to the Florida State University Office of Multicultural Affairs Records, 1956-1964; 1968-2007, 1987-2005, (Repository Unknown)
