Greetings!
Thank you for visiting the Division of Multicultural Affairs and Community Engagement in our home in cyberspace. As Vice President for Multicultural Affairs and Community Engagement at Wright State University, my job has two complementary parts: one is to facilitate the university's work directly related to multicultural issues on campus; the other is to promote collaborations with the greater Dayton community. The goals of these collaborations are to serve the greater good, promote an understanding of the diversity that exists in our community and provide experiential learning opportunities for students—experiences that help keep the learning they do in the classroom relevant and personally meaningful. Desired outcomes for our work related to multicultural issues are to recruit and retain a student body, staff and faculty who reflect our region and broader global society; to create an environment on campus free from discrimination in which all are invited to participate fully; and finally, to provide members of our campus community the knowledge and skills they need to be productive, successful and engaged citizens of a diverse, global society.
Creating an environment in which students learn to look at the world critically and compassionately is my ultimate goal. I hope that the information on these pages helps you to partner with me and the staff in the Division to achieve our shared goal of transforming lives with diversity.
Warm Regards,
Kimberly Barrett, Ph.D.
Wright State University is committed to the success of its students, faculty, and staff. The supportive environment we provide is designed to encourage the academic pursuits of all members of our university community, including diverse abilities and educational backgrounds; ethnic and cultural heritages; family experiences and economic means; physical and learning differences; geographically mobile and place bound circumstances; and career and life aspirations.
Our shared objective is to forge this diversity into an environment of shared academic excellence. We recognize that the success of each individual strengthens our community. Thus all members of our university community, whether students, employees, or both, must have a full and equal opportunity to develop and utilize their potential.
The University thus firmly rejects discrimination on the basis of race, sex (including gender identity/expression), color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, genetic (DNA) information, veteran status, military status, or sexual orientation because such discrimination both subverts academic freedom and inherently undermines the full utilization of abilities and potential on which the university’s shared pursuit of excellence is based.
A key element of the university’s mission is to serve as a catalyst for transforming the lives of the students and communities we serve. Mindful of that mission and our responsibility to teach by example, we will maintain high ethical standards in all of our relationships and activities through open communication, trust, professionalism, and a spirit of collaboration.
Since Wright State is a public institution, our commitment to pursue academic excellence through full and equal opportunity is fundamental to our existence as a university. That commitment will be most effectively implemented with the full support and generosity of spirit which characterizes a collegial organization at its best.
It is therefore the policy of Wright State University not only to avoid discrimination, but to go further. The university will act affirmatively to identify and eliminate any artificial barriers that may exclude or impede members of certain groups in their pursuit of excellence. Such affirmative action will address the treatment of persons who are already members of the university community, as well as applicants for admission or employment.
It is therefore important that each of us make a personal commitment to join in our shared pursuit of these twin goals: vigorous pursuit of academic excellence through shared full and equal opportunity. Thank you for joining in this enterprise.
David R. Hopkins
President
June 2010
Greetings and welcome to the first edition of what we hope will become a quarterly newsletter from the Division of Multicultural Affairs and Community Engagement at Wright State University.
As you will read, we are busy creating an inclusive campus, bringing thought-provoking cultural programming to Dayton, and helping to meet the needs of our community in partnership with our many talented faculty, staff, and students.
Two Wright State professors have been named the Wright State University Social Entrepreneurship Fund’s first award recipients.
Thomas Hangartner, Ph.D., led a team that built a digital x-ray imaging device that does not require film, chemicals, or other supplies after installation.
Wright State University’s Diversity in the Multicultural Millennium Conference, which began as Quest for Community in 2001, will take a new form this year, exploring diversity challenges and promising practices in a modern multicultural context.
This year’s theme, “Affirmative Action: 52 Years of Debate,” will examine diversity issues in higher education and their impact on the broader community.
The Bolinga Black Cultural Resources Center will offer programs for first-time college students.
The center’s orientation program, Pathways, will be held August 20–21 and will include campus tours, gatherings with faculty and staff, and workshops on preparing for college.
In August, the Office of Affirmative Action will change its name to the Office of Equity and Inclusion.
AHNA’s Lunar New Year celebration drew 400 students, faculty, and staff from Wright State University and other Miami Valley schools.
Minnijean Brown Trickey, one of the Little Rock Nine, gave a campus talk, sharing vivid details about her famous first day entering Little Rock Central High School in 1957.
The Human Relations Council’s “Speak. Be Heard. Be Considered.” education series and the Bolinga Black Cultural Resources Center’s “Dear Dr. Hip-Hop” program collaborated to promote nonviolence initiatives in Dayton.
The Women’s Center, in partnership with Career Services, received a Campus Action Project grant from the American Association of University Women.
Grant recipients also attended the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders.
The Division of Multicultural Affairs and Community Engagement celebrated campus religious diversity with an Interfaith Symposium, the first event in its interfaith series.
The symposium brought together students from many faith traditions, including Sikh, Muslim, Judaism, Mormonism, Buddhism, and more.
Dr. Kimberly Barrett, Vice President for Multicultural
Affairs & Community Engagement, wants to hear your concerns and comments on how your needs can best be
addressed.
October 3-4, 2013
Wright State University
Student Union
