Dear NYSID Community,

I was with my nine-year-old son when the verdict at George Floyd’s murder trial was delivered on Tuesday.  I listened with trepidation and emotion, hoping for a just outcome. This past year has been so difficult on many levels, including the wrongful death of Mr. Floyd and others, and the ensuing protests. When the jury pronounced Derek Chauvin guilty of killing Mr. Floyd, I experienced a moment of relief and renewed faith in our society and system, mixed with great sadness. A human being was murdered. George Floyd is not coming back to his family members who spoke so movingly after the verdict.  The weight of the moment was reinforced by members of communities across the nation talking about their experiences and their emotions in response to the trial.  And here’s my son, asking me questions. I found myself having a conversation with him about Mr. Floyd as well as the history of racism in this country, and for far too many individuals, the lack of social justice. He responded by telling me what he knew about Harriet Tubman, the abolitionists, and Martin Luther King. I realized this was a teaching moment for him as well as me. There is so much more to talk about. It was clear and poignant to me that I was having a very different conversation with my son than many individuals, people of color or Hispanics or Asian-Americans, have to have with their children to keep them safe and alive. He will not know or have the struggles that many people in our country face daily. I know that is a privilege denied to many. My son’s attempt to put current events into historical context hit me as a father as well as the leader of an educational institution. 

This is an inflection point, for our nation as well as our institution, and for me as an individual. The New York School of Interior Design has a long history of providing an exceptional level of education that has contributed to a great many success stories. I am proud of that. But 170 East 70th Street and 401 Park Avenue South do not exist in bubbles.  The events that happen outside their walls have an effect on what we teach and who we teach within them. We must reflect on our past and learn from mistakes, both overt and systemic.  While we live with our legacy, as president, I am committed to a present and future that reflects what I value. Under my leadership, NYSID will dedicate itself to focusing and taking action on the issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We have to, because as human beings we must do all that we can to help our fellow citizens achieve their fullest potential. I firmly believe that this is the ethical thing to do, and I am committed to seeing it through. 

Over the past year I’ve had the opportunity to discuss these issues with many members of our community who are people of color, especially when I called for the forming of a NYSID commission on DEI. These conversations, which I don’t think would have happened naturally just a couple of years ago, have been eye-opening and important for me to be a part of.  Many are difficult and acknowledged as so, but they have to happen.  I am listening to the struggle, discrimination, and hurt that many of our fellow students, alumni, and faculty have experienced even at the New York School of Interior Design.  As a human being, the accounts are difficult to hear. But they cement my resolve to implement meaningful, long-term, actionable changes that will make NYSID a welcoming and supportive environment for all.  No area is too sacred to examine—curriculum, recruitment, hiring practices, faculty composition, support services—if it means more individuals and their voices will be brought to the table. The institution, the interior design profession, and our society will be better for it. 

This week’s events in Minneapolis reinforced that the status quo is not acceptable, and that justice and change are achievable.  There is hard work to be done, and NYSID will move forward in a more just, equitable, and inclusive way.  You have my word as president of the college, and as a man who wants his son to grow up in a world where everyone is respected and protected for who they are as individuals, given equal opportunities to achieve their goals, and valued for their differences.  

Sincerely,

David