Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Council

Mission Statement

The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Council works in alignment with the mission, goals, and values of Otero College. The council works with administration, as well as the staff, faculty, and student voices to identify deficiencies in our campus culture related to equity, diversity and inclusion, and implement solutions to address our deficiencies.

Land Acknowledgement Statement

Otero College is located between the Arkansas and Purgatoire Rivers, on homelands sacred to Native Americans throughout the region including the Apache, Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, Lakota, Shoshone, Kiowa, and Ute. The region that we now call “La Junta,” the “junction” or meeting point, has been a place of trade, gathering, hunting, community, and healing for native peoples dating back at least 15,000 years. Otero recognizes that since our Institution's founding, every member of our community, past, present, and future benefits from our campus’ occupation and use of these lands. We honor the generations who have lived here for millennia and will forever call this place their home. Through this acknowledgment, we affirm the original stewardship of these lands by Indigenous people and commit ourselves to being more accountable to their voices and needs.