North Carolina State University. Office for Equal Opportunity and Equity.

The position of affirmative action officer was created within the Office of the Provost in 1972. Clauston L. Jenkins and William H. Simpson held the post successively until 1974, when Lawrence M. Clark was appointed. Clark carried the title assistant provost for affirmative action from that time until 1982, when he became associate provost.

In 1995, upon Clark's retirement, Joanne G. Woodard was named interim affirmative action officer. She was appointed assistant provost for equal opportunity two years later. The Office for Equal Opportunity and Equity was established within the Provost's Office in 1999, under the direction of the vice provost for equal opportunity and equity (the successor to the associate provost for affirmative action). Woodard was appointed to the position at that time, and still held it as of 2007.

The Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Office oversaw all activities at North Carolina State University related to compliance with federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, gender, and disability. In this capacity, it was responsible for developing and implementing the university's affirmative action/equal opportunity plans; providing education and training regarding non-discrimination and non-harassment policies and procedures; investigating and resolving complaints of discrimination and harassment; assisting in the recruitment and retention of faculty, staff, and students; and overseeing special programs for minorities, women, and the disabled, as well as advocating the civil rights of those groups. Beginning in 1989, the office also worked in cooperation with the Office of African American Affairs (which became the Office for Diversity and African American Affairs in 1999).

The Equal Opportunity Office began overseeing the Disability Services Office (then Disability Services for Students) in 1999. The latter was created within the Division of Student Affairs in 1985, and renamed Disability Services for Students in 1994. It became the Disability Services Office in 2005, at which time its director was made associate vice provost for equal opportunity and equity. Patricia D. Smith served as coordinator of Handicapped/Disability Services from 1985 to 2000. Cheryl R. Branker was then appointed director of Disability Services as Smith's successor, and still held the position as of 2007.

The Handicapped/Disability Services Office coordinated all activities at N.C. State University involving compliance with federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability. In this role, it assisted students with physical, psychological, and learning disabilities, and facilitated equal access and opportunity for students, faculty, and staff.

• 1972 - 1973 : Clauston L. Jenkins
• 1973 - 1974 : William S. Simpson
• 1974 - 1982 : Lawrence M. Clark (Assistant Provost for Affirmative Action)
• 1982 - 1995 : Lawrence M. Clark (Associate Provost for Affirmative Action)
• 1995 - 1997 : Joanne G. Woodard (Interim Affirmative Action Officer)
• 1997 - 1999 : Joanne G. Woodard (Assistant Provost for Equal Opportunity)
• 1999 - : Joanne G. Woodard (Vice Provost for Equal Opportunity and Equity)

• 1985 - 1994 : Patricia D. Smith (Coordinator of Handicapped Services)
• 1994 - 2000 : Patricia D. Smith (Coordinator of Disability Services)
• 2000 - 2005 : Patricia D. Smith (Director of Disability Services)
• 2005 - : Cheryl R. Branker (Associate Vice Provost for Equal Opportunity and Equity)

From the guide to the North Carolina State University, Office of the Provost, Office for Equal Opportunity and Equity Records, 1970 - Circa 2000, (Special Collections Research Center)