Office of Multicultural Affairs Newsletter
March 2022 | D-Term | Spring 2022
|
|
|
Rev. Cheryl Leshay has returned from sabbatical and will be holding in-person office hours during D-Term.
|
|
|
Upcoming Campus Programs and Events
|
|
|
- Thursday, March 17th at 4:00 PM EST
- Thursday, March 17th at 7:00 PM EST
- Friday, March 18th at 12:00 PM EST
- Saturday, March 19th at 12:00 PM EST
- Sunday, March 20th at 12:30 PM EST
- Sunday, March 20th at 5:00 PM EST
- Monday, March 21st at 1:00 PM EST
- Monday, March 21st at 7:00 PM EST
- Tuesday, March 22nd at 4:00 PM EST
- Tuesday, March 22nd at 5:00 PM EST
- Tuesday, March 22nd at 7:00 PM EST
- Wednesday, March 23rd at 12:00 PM EST
- Wednesday, March 23rd at 4:00 PM EST
- Thursday, March 24th at 7:00 PM EST
- Friday, March 25th at 12:00 PM EST
- Sunday, March 26th at 7:30 PM EST
- Sunday, March 27th at 12:30 PM EST
- Sunday, March 27th at 5:00 PM EST
- Sunday, March 27th at 7:30 PM EST
- Wednesday, March 30th at 4:00 PM EST
- Thursday, March 31st at 6:00 PM EST
- Saturday, April 2nd at 10:15 AM EST
- Sunday, April 3rd at 12:30 PM EST
- Thursday, April 7th at 4:00 PM EST
- Thursday, April 7th at 4:00 PM EST
- Saturday, April 9th at 1:00 PM EST
- Saturday, April 9th at 7:30 PM EST
- Sunday, April 10th at 7:30 PM EST
- Monday, April 11th at 12:00 PM EST
- Thursday, April 14th at 1:00 PM EST
- Thursday, April 21st at 12:30 PM EST
- Thursday, April 21st at 7:30 PM EST
- Office of Multicultural Affairs sponsored programs and events.
|
|
Kevin Hines: Survivor • Storyteller • Filmmaker
Thursday, March 31, 2022
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM EST
Rubin Campus Center Odeum |
|
|
Upcoming Holidays, Holy Days, and Commemorative Days
|
|
|
- Purim (March 16-17)
- St. Patrick's Day (March 17)
- Holi (March 18)
- World Sleep Day (March 18)
- Lailatul Barat (March 18-19)
- Mid-Sha'ban (March 18-19)
- St. Joseph Day (March 19)
- Spring Equinox aka Spring Begins (March 20)
- Ostara (March 20)
- International Day of Happiness (March 20)
- Baháʼí Naw-Rúz (March 20-21)
- International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (March 21)
- International Day of Forests (March 21)
- World Down Syndrome Day (March 21)
- Norouz (March 21-22)
- National Agriculture Day (March 22)
- World Water Day (March 22)
- International Day for the Right to the Truth (March 24)
- Greek Independence Day (March 25)
- Feast of the Annunciation (March 25)
- International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Enslavement (March 25)
- Earth Hour Day (March 26)
- World Theatre Day (March 27)
- World Bipolar Day (March 30)
- International Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31)
- Cesar Chavez Day (March 31)
- March 2022 is observed as:
- Women's History Month
- National Nutrition Month
Happy Birthday to all of the March babies! |
|
|
WPI News:
- Misrepresenting the Situation at WPI (Inside Higher Ed)
- Russia-Ukraine War Disrupts Study Abroad | Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted some colleges to recall students from study abroad programs; future programs in certain parts of Eastern Europe may also be in jeopardy. (Inside Higher Ed)
- Russian Academics Risk Arrest to Oppose War | But others seek to oppose the war in ways that will not endanger them. (Inside Higher Ed)
- Cutting Faculty Salaries by Executive Order | University of Missouri system continues to defend the president’s right to cut individual faculty pay by 25 percent, but professors wonder how far the policy will go—and at what greater costs. (Inside Higher Ed)
- How Presidents Can Best Promote Diversity, Equity and Inclusion | No matter where they stand politically, every president must provide leadership in this area, writes Sheila Edwards Lange, who recommends some ways to do so effectively. (Inside Higher Ed)
- What BIPOC Professors Need From Students | Shanique G. Brown and Jennifer M. Gómez, two Black professors, write an open letter to BIPOC grad students and others offering 10 tips for appropriately engaging with marginalized faculty. (Inside Higher Ed)
- Appeals Court Revives COVID Lawsuits | A federal appeals court partially reversed a lower court ruling against students seeking refunds from American University and George Washington University for moving online during COVID-19. (Inside Higher Ed)
- Michelle Obama Launches HBCU Voter Registration Challenge (Inside Higher Ed)
- Asked to Discuss Her Whiteness | Bridgewater State asked a white faculty applicant about her white privilege. The job seeker, who lost the job, says this line of questioning was discriminatory. Was it? (Inside Higher Ed)
- No Laughing Matter | Federal judge green-lights much of a First Amendment case against the University of North Texas brought by an adjunct professor who said he lost a job for “joking” about microaggressions in a faculty lounge. (Inside Higher Ed)
- Coming Together in a Time of Crisis | Faith-based colleges and universities are stepping up their efforts to support the citizens of Ukraine as Russia’s assault on the country continues. (Inside Higher Ed)
- Survey Shows How Students at HBCUs Were Impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic (The Journal of Blacks In Higher Education)
- Legislators Call for Congress to Address Funding Disparities for Land-Grant Institutions (Diverse Issues In Higher Education)
- What Anti-LGBTQ+ State Bills Mean for Higher Ed (Diverse Issues In Higher Education)
- As Title IX Marks 50 Years, Inequality Still Exists (Diverse Issues In Higher Education)
- Afghan Refugees and the Role of Higher Education in Global Crises (Diverse Issues In Higher Education)
- Cash Assistance Grants vs. Tuition Assistance: What Colleges and Universities Need to Know (Edquity)
- Study Examines Gender Differences in Components That Contribute to Wisdom (Women In Academia)
- Study Finds Gender Differences in Approvals for U.S. Citizenship (Women In Academia)
Local/State/National/International News:
|
|
|
Mental Health, Wellness, Self-Care, and Mindfulness
|
|
|
Mosaic: Men of Color Support Group
- A collaborative partnership between the Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) and Student Development & Counseling Center (SDCC) the Mosaic: Men of Color Support Group offers social, personal, professional, and cultural support to WPI students who are male/men and Black, Indigenous, or Person of Color (BIPOC).
- Mosaic meets weekly during D-Term on Mondays from 5:00 PM - 6:15 PM EST in the OASIS Multicultural Center (OASIS House) and on Zoom.
- Monday, March 21st
- Monday, March 28th
- Monday, April 4th
- Monday, April 11th
- Monday, April 25th
- Please email Arnold Lane for more information or Register Here.
|
|
Institutions and Meaning Group (coming in D-Term)
Thursdays at 3:00 PM EST (beginning March 17th)
Student Development and Counseling Center (SDCC) Group Meeting Room
12 Einhorn Road
Open to students who have themselves personally or through someone close to them experienced contact with institutions such as the foster care system, adoption, residential treatment, group homes, the criminal justice system, correctional facilities, or inpatient psychiatric treatment. A place for students who want to talk with others who have had diverse experiences with institutions to explore the meaning of their experiences. |
|
Current events may be hard to grapple with as multiple historically Black colleges and universities faced bomb threats, Minneapolis police fatally shot Amir Locke, and many states and districts continue to ban teaching inclusive books and talking about race. Amidst these aggressions, we want to remind Black educators to practice self-care—and all educators to elevate the importance of Black students’ experiences and their mental health. These resources can help. (Learning For Justice)
|
|
Virtual Mindful Wednesdays and Thursdays
- Mindfulness Wednesdays and Thursdays will be conducted virtually through Zoom for the foreseeable future and will not be held in person.
- The Wednesday session begins at 12:15 PM EST and the Thursday session begins at 2:15 PM EST.
- Sessions include a 10 – 15 meditation with time for questions or comments.
- Please email Robin Benoit for more information.
|
|
Live Guided Meditation | hosted by Meditation Breaks
- Immerse yourself in the benefits of meditation and mindfulness. This live online meditation class hosted by Meditation Breaks provides a wide array of easy to learn mindfulness teachings and techniques aimed at transforming your life -- including stress relief, increasing happiness, living in the moment, and much more.
- Great for people looking to learn how meditation can help them in daily life and for those interested in maintaining a regular meditation practice.
- Note: times are Wednesdays at 8:30 PM EST.
|
|
|
Mental Health Training Webinars
|
|
|
Student Mental Health Matters
Join Learning for Justice for a webinar about student mental health—and why it matters. Cohosted by Dr. Charles Barrett, Chair for the National Association of School Psychologists Multicultural Affairs Committee, this webinar will focus on challenges students face regarding mental health, including how those challenges can vary depending on their intersecting identities. We will also share examples of what schools and districts are doing to address these challenges. Finally, you will learn about tools and strategies for your own classroom and school community. (Learning For Justice) |
|
|
Part II Meeting the Mental Health Needs of Minority College Students
In this episode, we replay part two of the Diverse Talk Live! webcast, "Meeting the Mental Health Needs of Minority College Students." In case you missed it, tune in as the panel of experts return to look at campus climate policies after the surge of Omicron and how they relate to the mental health and health-seeking behaviors in minoritized students. Listen in as they propose supplemental resources for faculty who are on the front line and discuss what we can do at the campus and institutional level to better support student mental health and connect students to services who are disproportionately under-utilizing formal treatment avenues. (Diverse Issues In Higher Education)
|
|
|
Meeting the Mental Health Needs of Minority College Students
In this episode we replay the December 7th Diverse Talk Live! webcast, "Meeting the Mental Health Needs of Minority College Students." In case you missed it, listen in as a panel of experts evaluate and advise on how higher ed institutions can best address the mental health needs of minority students — particularly as they grapple with a myriad of challenges including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and a nationwide flashpoint on systemic racism, punctuated by the recent guilty verdicts of the individuals charged with the murder of Ahmaud Arbery. (Diverse Issues In Higher Education)
|
|
|
LGBTQIAP+ Resources and Support
|
|
|
|
Read, Watch, Listen, and Learn
|
|
|
|
Articles:
Films and Television:
- Residence Life Cinema (SWANK Motion Pictures, Inc.)
- Alcohol Awareness
- Asian Pacific Islander History and Culture
- Black History and Culture
- Constitution Day
- Disabilities
- Diversity and Inclusion
- Earth Day
- Hispanic History and Culture
- International
- LGBTQ+ Pride
- Social Relevance
- National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week
- National Native American Heritage Month
- Women's History Month
- Women's Studies
- World AIDS Day
- Anyone on WPI Wi-Fi can access free streaming services at cinema.wpi.edu.
Podcasts:
Books:
|
|
Forgotten in a Broken Mental Health System
- Anti-Asian hate crimes increased by 338% in major cities.
- Some of the violence underscores the need for better mental health care access.
- The surge in anti-Asian violence has taken a toll on the AAPI mental health, increasing the need for mental health care among the community.
|
|
Ain’t I a Woman?
Born into slavery, Sojourner Truth delivered a now-famous speech at the 1851 Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio, but the accuracy of the written accounts of this speech is in dispute. Two versions of the speech appear here. (Learning For Justice) |
|
|
Voter Education and Registration
|
|
|
|
Massachusetts Primary Election
Tuesday, November 20th
Election Day 2022
Tuesday, November 8th
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and the Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) are non-partisan entities and do not support or oppose any political candidate or party.
|
|
|
|
Where the fight for the Black vote really started | History Refocused
Black political power was at its height during Reconstruction. What happened? In this first episode of “History Refocused,” we learn how a former slave’s story shows both the immense power of the vote and the community-shattering effects when it’s taken away by violence. Abby Phillip talks with CNN’s Brandon Tensley to discuss why federal intervention was key both in the Reconstruction years and still today.
|
|
- The Graduate Student and Training Readiness Sessions (STARS) is an annual series of workshops organized by the Office of Graduate Studies that provides overviews on important career and professional development topics.
- STARS workshops in 2021-2022 will be on campus in Gateway I Room 1002 (60 Prescott Street) and will be held from 12:00 - 1:00 PM EST. Registration links will be provided below for each session.
|
|
|
Career Event
Graduate Student Government and the Career Development Center
Wednesday, March 16, 2022
5:00 PM EST
Unity Hall (UH 500)
Food and a cash bar will be available as well. We hope to see you all there!
|
|
|
Student Jobs and Internships
|
|
|
|
The Office of Pre-collegiate Outreach Programs is looking to hire a team of undergraduates to assist in the daily implementation of the Launch, Frontiers, and Frontiers for Credit programs. Summer Staff will be responsible for building connections with high school participants, assist in their transition to online learning, serve as a resource to connect participants to the staff/offices to ensure their academic success. Additionally, you will be responsible for building and a sense of connection and belonging for our program participants. All summer staff will act as ambassadors from the WPI community, sharing WPI’s culture and traditions, while also serving as STEM role models and by sharing their personal experiences. A successful mentor will also exhibit a positive attitude, a sense of humor, and an interest to work with high school students and staff from diverse backgrounds.
Applications are due by Sunday, March 27th. If you have any questions, please contact Gregory Lane, Associate Director of Pre-Collegiate Outreach Programs at glane@wpi.edu.
Apply Here
|
|
|
Professional Development Opportunities
|
|
|
Bystander Intervention to stop anti-Asian/American and xenophobic harassment
February - June 2022
Various Days of the Week
To combat the current rise in harassment and discrimination and to also proactively prepare for the future increase of hate incidents, Advancing Justice | Chicago is partnering with New York-based nonprofit Hollaback! and CAIR-Chicago to plan and implement an aggressive scaling up of locally-led bystander hate incident intervention trainings for community members.
Disclaimer: website contains an anti-Asian visual.
Register Here
|
|
Education Now | The Transition from High School to College for the Pandemic Generation
Wednesday, March 23, 2022
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EST
Education Now is an HGSE webinar series that responds to the dramatic changes in the field of education in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Our episodes provide insights and strategies to shape equitable new approaches to challenges across the education landscape.
Register Here
|
|
Intersectionality Identified
Thursday, March 24, 2022
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM EST
Please join the Inclusion & Equity Committee on Thursday, March 24 at 7:00 pm ET for a discussion of intersectionality. By understanding the dimensions of diversity and how they intersect, we can begin to understand the complex and cumulative impact of discrimination and oppression. In this webinar, participants will learn about intersectionality as well as how to create branch or state programming for members on this concept.
Register Here |
|
Latinx Leads Student Leadership Virtual Conference
Friday, March 25 - Saturday, March 26, 2022
The overarching goal of the Latinx Leads Conference is to help students become stronger leaders and allies to the Latinx community by practicing inclusion in their organizations and campuses. The Conference empowers them to create a more accepting, equitable environment, and preparing them to work effectively in a diverse workplace. Participants will explore the history and roots of the Latinx community, examine where they are currently, and look to their future.
Email multiculturalaffairs@wpi.edu if you are interested in attending. We will cover your registration fee.
Register Here |
|
Social Justice: Creating Change
Saturday, March 26, 2022
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM EST
Social justice is at the core of what AAUW does every day. Whether at the national, state, or local level, AAUW staff, volunteers and members work incredibly hard to help share a more equitable world. What does it mean to support social justice and how is that different (or the same) as racial justice, economic justice and the other core issues that AAUW works on? Please save the date to join us on Thursday, May 26 for a discussion of social justice and what it truly means to be a part of AAUW’s impact.
Register Here |
|
Black Students Lead Virtual Conference
Saturday, April 9, 2022
The overarching goal of the Black Students Lead Conference (BSL) is to help students become stronger leaders and allies to the Black community by practicing inclusion in their organizations and campuses. The Conference empowers them to create a more accepting, equitable environment, and preparing them to work effectively in a diverse workplace. Participants will explore the history and roots of the Black community, examine where they are currently, and look to their future.
Email multiculturalaffairs@wpi.edu if you are interested in attending. We will cover your registration fee.
Register Here |
|
Learn about Graduate School at Purdue University
Sunday, April 10th - Monday, April 11th
The goal of the Early Discovery program is to empower promising underrepresented students at the freshman and sophomore levels to pursue research-intensive graduate study in engineering.
Register Here |
|
United Collegiate Women's Leadership Conference (UCWLC)
Saturday, April 16, 2022
The United Collegiate Women’s Leadership Conference is an interactive transformational experience where women from all walks of life come together to understand the authentic leader they have within themselves, while preparing them to tackle critical issues facing their campus and larger communities. Women often are socialized to believe that exerting themselves means they are bossy, or that being quiet means they are shy. Issues of systemic misogyny creates a dynamic where women often are left competing against one another, or believing that one woman’s shine can diminish another’s. The truth is that united women are more likely to be successful. Women should not have to choose which of their identities they are going to lead with in their personal and professional lives. At UCWLC, we believe it’s all for one, and one for all. UCWLC creates a space that is high-energy, empowering and designed to create a transformational experience.
Email multiculturalaffairs@wpi.edu if you are interested in attending. We will cover your registration fee.
Register Here |
|
National Student Leadership Diversity Virtual Conference
Saturday, April 30, 2022
The National Student Leadership Diversity Convention is the largest national gathering of student leaders and campus based advisors to address the most critical topics of diversity and social justice challenging our campuses today. Through experiential workshops, keynote sessions, and round table discussions teams of students will explore various elements of diversity and how they affect themselves and their campuses. During the conference students will be led through facilitated workshops to develop a Campus Action Plan for a program or event that the teams selects to work on together on in order to bring back a piece of the NSLDC experience to their own campuses.
Email multiculturalaffairs@wpi.edu if you are interested in attending. We will cover your registration fee.
Register Here |
|
|
Scholarship Opportunities
|
|
|
|
OMA Staff Virtual Office Hours
|
|
|
|
CRC Chaplain Student Hours
|
|
|
|
Academic Support Services
|
|
|
|
WPI Multicultural, Intercultural, International, and Religious Community
|
|
|
|
Campus Advocacy Resources
|
|
|
- Dean of Students | Student resources for advocacy, citizenship, empowerment, inclusion, respect, and support
- Office of International Student Life (ISL) | Student resources for international support, education, community, and advocacy
- Office of Accessibility Services (OAS) | Student resources for accommodation services, advocacy, support, and assistance
- Title IX | Student resources for anti-discrimination policy and equal opportunity education
- Student Development and Counseling Center (SDCC) | Student resources for counseling, therapy, and mental health/wellness
- Graduate Student Government (GSG) | Student resources for addressing the social and academic needs of graduate students
- Student Government Association (SGA) | Student resources for addressing the social and academic needs of undergraduate students
|
|
|
Additional Support and Resources
|
|
|
|
(OMA newsletter is distributed on Wednesdays weekly)
|
|
|
|
|
