Archive
Eugene Robinson Presents "Is America Living the Dream?"
 | In Honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Tuesday, January 22
7:30 pm in Pruis Hall
|
Eugene Robinson provides a compelling look at race relations and diversity today. The author of the recently released Disintegration: The Splintering of Black America, Robinson explains why old concepts of race in America are obsolete. Born in the segregated South, Robinson tells of the civil rights movement when he was a black student at a predominately white high school. He speaks to the progress that African-Americans have made and shows that much remains in education people that race is ultimately meaningless--except as an artifact of society.
Minority Student, faculty, & Staff Reception
Monday, September 17, 2012 at 12:00 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom. Lunch will be provided.
The Office of Institutional Diversity and the Multicultural Center is hosting the Minority Student/Faculty/Staff Reception. The goal of this event is to bring together the various minority constituencies from across Ball State’s campus to begin to network and dialogue on ways to collaborate over the course of the school year.
Please RSVP for this event by emailing the Multicultural Center at mc2@bsu.edu or calling at 765-285-1344 by September 10, 2012.
Presentation on The Measure of America 2010-2011
Wednesday, August 29th, 2012 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM at the Allen County Public Library Downtown Theater
The Northeast Indiana Central Labor Council is sponsoring a presentation to be led by one of the Co-directors of The Measure of America. The session will focus on data related to Northeast Indiana. The Measure of America 2010-2011 by Kristen Lewis and Sarah Burd-Sharps will focus on education, income, and health. It provides a unique perspective on how to measure our progress and gaps as a society in these three areas through what they are calling a Human Development Index. While people may not necessarily agree with all of the specific policy and program recommendations put forward by the authors and sponsoring organization, the body does represent a fresh and holistic view.
Diversity Seminars 2010
Voices of Intolerance
Design + Diversity
Innovation
2009-2010 Marshall Scholarship Recipient
Congratulations to Dustin Shepler! Dustin was a first-year student in the Counseling Psychology doctoral program. Find out more about Dustin...
Dustin wrote:
For me, diversity is not merely a word that is incorporated into a paper or speech to pacify critics or demonstrate sensitivity to others; it is a guide for living a purposeful life. Although I consider my diversity "work" to have begun when I conducted a study on race and religion for my senior paper during my bachelor's program, I was raised, much like Ms. Sandy Marshall, with an awareness of differences and how attitudes about other's lives can either result in hate and misunderstanding, or foster growth and acceptance. Though I am still interested in the intersection of race and religion, my work with diversity issues has shifted more to GLBT issues. As a result of that shift in focus, I conducted a study on perceived social support in GLB college students for my master's thesis, and am now the primary investigator in a study on counselor competency in working with transgender clients. My research team includes undergraduate and graduate students who are also interested in exploring these issues. I am also incorporating diversity into the undergraduate course I am teaching this year, Human Relationship Development. To counteract the very limited cultural perspective of the assigned textbook, I incorporated a diversity theme throughout the class to encourage student exploration of these dynamics. Recognizing that the text for the class I teach as part of my assistantship failed to address diversity issues, I have incorporated a diversity "theme" throughout the class in order to allow students to explore issues from more than one cultural perspective. By exposing other BSU students to diversity issues (such as the role of culture in mental diagnosis, various ways that stigma can impact relationship development, etc.) it is my hope that those I interact with will move forward in their own development.
As I have continued my own development I have become more involved with outreach projects related to social justice. It is my belief that social justice and diversity are intricately related, and that understanding leads to a responsibility to effect change. I served as the co-chair of "Hope for the Holidays," a program that I created with the Social Justice League (a newly-formed group spearheaded by students in our department to focus on social justice issues). Through this program, students, staff and faculty in the Counseling Psychology department worked together to create gift bags for child clients in our Counseling Practicum Clinic, many of whom are from low income families. We were able to provide gift bags for over 40 children who otherwise may not have received a present during the holiday season. I also have been a member of BSU's Diversity Outreach Team through BSU's Counseling and Psychological Services Center. This outreach work has provided me with many opportunities to speak to undergraduate groups about sexual orientation, race, economic status, gender, and other issues of diversity.
By serving as a role model for my undergraduates and helping shape their attitudes toward diversity issues, conducting research and presenting at professional conferences, and by working to develop my identity as an advocate for oppressed groups I have grown in various ways. I have improved my ability to accurately listen to others' world views, which are sometimes vastly different from how I see things. I have learned the power that mutual understanding and respect can have on relationships. I have found comfort with my own identity and a deeper understanding of who I am and how I can work to effect change not only through research and professional presentations, outreach activities, and advocacy to my Congressman, but simply by how I live my life. Though I believe there is great merit in the academic pursuit of diversity issues, I believe living my life surrounded by people who are different than me allows both me, and others, the opportunity to gain understanding about differences and, in a natural way, better relate to others.
My intention for future diversity work and social justice advocacy includes continuing to conduct research on GLBT issues in general and GLBT issues in racial minority groups, advocating for increased attention to diversity in counselor training programs, and incorporating even more diversity issues into the classes I will teach in the future. I also plan to continue my involvement with Social Justice League and continue to help mobilize this organization to reach out to those who go unheard in our society. Eventually, after becoming a licensed psychologist, I also plan to take on some pro bono clients in order to serve those who cannot afford to pay for counseling services. Through all of these aspirations, and many more, I will continue to immerse myself in different cultures and live my life in a way that demonstrates my commitment to diversity and social justice.
The Diversity Associates for the 2009-2010 Academic Year
We are proud to announce that we had a total of 20 projects, four of which are collaborative efforts. Find out more about each diversity-related project, and join us in congratulating our past Associates!
Collaberative Associates
Women's Studies
Elaine Cotner and Maude Jennings - Lesbian Feminisms: Issues of Race and Religion
Disabled Students
Carlos Taylor and Larry Markle - Service Animal Awareness
Swimming
Laura Siebold-Caudill and Emily Kowalski -
Make a Splash
Special Education
Kourtland Koch and Azar Hadadian -
New Perspective: Understanding Disabilities in a Muslim World Individual Associates
Music
Mei Zhong -
The Development of Chinese Art Songs
Family and Consumer Science
Carla Earhart -
Archie Bunker's Neighborhood Carol Friesen -
The Impact of Poverty on Quality of Life Thelma Lazo-Flores -
Body and Mind Perspectives of Sitting from the East-West Collective Scott Hall -
Teaching About Parents with Disabilities
Social Work
Judith Gray -
Applying a Framework of Intersectionality to Understanding Diversity Kyama Kabadaki -
Biracial Adoptions Gerontology
Kathy Segrist -
Community Impact: Aging Women: Cause for Celebration and Concern for Consequences
David Haber -
Religious Diversity and Aging: Focus on Judaism
International Programs
Jim Rohrer -
Hoosier-American Cultural Immersion for BSU International Students Po Hu -
Appreciating China University Housing
Tim O'Malley -
LGBT Resource Room English
Rai Peterson -
Queer Literature/Queer Theory Course Development Geralyn Strecker -
Negro Leagues Baseball in History, Literature, and Film Women's Studies
Carmen Siering -
Inscribing Gender on the Body Curriculum Development Child Development
Kresha Warnock -
Promoting Prosocial Behavior in Young Children: Guidance and Cultural Factors