About the Society
The Society, formerly known as The Frederick Douglass Society, is a diverse group of predominantly Black and Brown faculty, staff, students, and administrators of West Chester University, who seek to elevate the social consciousness of the campus, and community at large. The Society facilitates the work and service needed to promote an ideal society that encompasses social justice, genuine equity, real reform, the arts, and holistic education.
Rising from the bonds of slavery, Frederick Douglass became an abolitionist, social justice educator, and civil rights leader. In the spirit of his life’s work, The Society and West Chester University are committed to inclusive excellence by promoting empowerment through education, social justice through civic engagement, and the advancement of human rights through thoughtful public dialogue. Society members provide leadership, support, and guidance to the West Chester University community regarding multicultural education, empowerment, and equality. We invite partners in our fulfillment of this mission.
The Society aims to stimulate other groups on campus to enrich our multicultural climate. The Society annually raises money for scholarship funds to increase the economic options available to the student body, to persons of color, along with those from a variety of ethnic groups. The Society seeks to promote an intellectual standard that is not only grounded in excellence, but also profoundly rooted in the public mission of higher education.