Neil Outar, interim chief diversity officer (CDO) at Missouri S&T since August 2017, will become the university’s CDO beginning Monday, July 1.

Outar’s duties will include: guiding S&T’s chancellor and leadership team on diversity and equity issues; serving as Title IX coordinator, chief equity officer and American with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance coordinator; and ensuring the university’s compliance with laws and regulations related to civil rights and disabilities.   

Outar joined S&T in 2015 to establish the office of institutional equity, diversity and inclusion. In 2018, he led an effort to secure $748,000 for diversity and inclusion efforts at Missouri S&T from the University of Missouri System’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Advisory Council for use in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 academic years.

Also in 2018 and under Outar’s leadership, the university began Miner Values training workshops during Orientation Week in August 2018. About 1,300 freshmen learned about Missouri S&T values through these workshops, and more than 50 faculty and staff worked with small groups of students on diversity, equity and inclusion topics.