In her role, she is responsible for the strategic direction and leadership of the office and supporting the university’s commitment to fulfill equal opportunity laws and policies. She manages the day-to-day operation of the office, which includes the supervision of a full time staff, and the administration and management of a considerable budget. She is also responsible for the coordination and administration of the university’s Title VI, Title VII and Title IX compliant intake, triage, investigation and resolution process, and also oversees the university’s affirmative action program and provides counsel to and advise university administrators, managers, supervisors and departments about equal opportunity, nondiscrimination, and anti-harassment, policies, regulations, guidelines and laws.
As it relates to diversity and inclusion, Ms. McCarty-Harris collaborates with staff on facilitating the diversity planning process with academic and administrative leaders, especially in regards to translating the affirmative action plan into applicable recruitment and retention data and directing climate-related initiatives as part of the diversity planning process.
She brings to the university over 15 years of experience in the public sector, including nine in higher education, and her energetic and passionate servant leadership approach to compliance has assisted organizations in achieving effective and strategic outcomes to diversity and inclusion. She previously served as the Director for the Office for Institutional Equity at Cleveland State University and was also the university’s Title IX Coordinator. She was also the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity at Youngstown State University, and has served as a senior attorney addressing employment-related issues at the City of Toledo (Toledo, Ohio).
Her skills as an attorney, university and public sector experience, as well as extensive knowledge of federal and state regulations and laws with the ability to collaborate and build partnerships with university senior leaders, faculty and staff is an asset to OIE, which mission is help campus administrators implement equitable resolutions regarding University issues in order to promote a more inclusive organizational structure.
Ms. McCarty-Harris is a licensed attorney in Texas and Ohio and received her undergraduate degree from UT-Austin and her juris doctorate from Southern Methodist University School of Law in Dallas, Texas. She currently serves as Membership Chair on the national board for the American Association for Access, Equity and Diversity (AAAED), the oldest operating association of professionals in the equal opportunity/affirmative action profession (aaaed.org).
