Campus & Community

Chandice Haste-Jackson Appointed Interim Director of First-Year Seminar Program

Wednesday, February 17, 2021, By Ellen de Graffenreid

Chandice Haste-Jackson

, associate teaching professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Science in the Falk College, has been appointed interim director of the First-Year Seminar course, effective Feb. 1, 2021.

The First-Year Seminar course is part of a change to the undergraduate curriculum approved by every ϲ school and college during the fall semester. Along with the inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA) course requirement, the First-Year Seminar is part of a commitment the University made to students in the 2019-2020 academic year requiring all students to take courses covering IDEA topics. The First-Year Seminar will replace the SEM 100 course for all incoming undergraduate students beginning in Fall 2021.

“Professor Haste-Jackson brings a broad and deep skill set in teaching and program development in diversity and inclusion, intercultural communication and community engaged partnerships to this new role,” says Associate Provost Chris Johnson. “With experience in international settings, faith communities, women’s issues and youth development, she has a track record of bringing people together to solve problems and address community needs at the local, national and international level. It is exciting that the First-Year Seminar will benefit from her leadership.”

In this new role, Haste-Jackson will collaborate with faculty, administrators and students to develop and deliver the new course. In collaboration with Provost Faculty Fellows Kira Reed and Jeff Mangram, she will work to recruit and train a diverse group of qualified instructors and create the curriculum for the First-Year Seminar. Additionally, she will ensure that the new course is appropriately assessed and continually improved in collaboration with the faculty advisory committee. Haste-Jackson will also partner with faculty across the University to develop ideas and strategies for leveraging the first-year seminar in the service of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion across the curriculum. Additionally, she will work with the Office of First-Year and Transfer Programs on the development of a holistic experience for incoming ϲ students.

“The addition of the First-Year Seminar to our curriculum must contribute to fostering a campus climate that welcomes every student. Launching the course with Professor Haste-Jackson serving as interim director means that the entire campus will benefit from her outstanding leadership,” says John Liu, interim vice chancellor and provost.

Haste-Jackson teaches courses on intimate relationships and gender roles, family development, relationship development and diversity, equity and inclusion. In addition, she coordinates the first year Gateway course for undergraduate students in the Falk College and teaches both large group (all college) and small group (major concentration) courses within the program. She previously coordinated the undergraduate internship program and supervises graduate students in their applied research internships.

Her past roles have included serving in the School of Education as director of the Liberty Partnerships Program, a government-sponsored school drop-out prevention program, executive director of a homeless shelter for women and children, executive director of a historical African American settlement house and assistant director of an inner city community center. She currently serves on the School Counselor Advisory Board for the ϲ City School District, is a board member of It’s About Childhood and Family, Inc. and is a consultant for the My Brother’s Keeper ϲ initiative founded by President Obama.

She has presented her research in national and international settings and has received research support from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, New York State Office of Temporary Disability Assistance, New York State Legislature, Onondaga County Department of Long Term Care and Aging Services, Onondaga County Youth Bureau, Onondaga County Department of Health, Onondaga County Department of Social Services and other agencies.

Haste-Jackson earned a Ph.D. in child and family studies from ϲ, an M.S. in behavioral sciences with a concentration in psychology from Cameron University and a B.A. in cultural anthropology from ϲ.