Diversity & Inclusion Week Comes to SLU
This Friday, February 28, St. Lawrence University is hosting its second annual Diversity and Inclusion Week.
The series of events will be hosted by faculty, staff, alumni and student organizations on campus, from February 28 to March 7, to celebrate the rich variety of backgrounds experiences on campus and the ways we can foster inclusion. The theme of the week is Conversation, Contemplation and Celebration.
According to Kimberly Flint-Hamilton, Associate Dean of Diversity and Inclusion, the goal of the week is to start conversations that would allow students to appreciate the diversity on campus and what steps they can take to make it a more inclusive community.
“Different perspective helps us understand the world better,” Flint-Hamilton said. “Think deeply about the challenges that people who are different from you might face and that might be a way to open your mind to not just awareness of the challenges that people faced but also an appreciation for the different perspectives that people bring.”
She suggested that students should choose to attend activities and discussions that they normally would not think to attend.Director of Student Activities John Robert O’Connor agreed with Flint-Hamilton.
“I would encourage students to separate one thing on their calendar that might get them outside their comfort zone or about an identity that they don’t hold,” he said.
“I think that it could be a really powerful experience that helps students get to the contemplation point of understanding that there are different perspectives from their own.”
On Monday, March 2, there will be an LGBTQIA Panel hosted by returning alumni as they talk about their experiences in the workforce and how it is influenced by their LGBTQIA identity.
On Wednesday March 4, a student-run project named The Dirty Deets: Not Your Mother’s Sex Ed will feature sex-positive talks.
On Friday March 6, faculty on campus will create a conversation about body positivity with Kiss my Fat Ass: Taming the Unruly Body.
Other exciting events are listed on the posters around campus and online. Flint-Hamilton noted that students should actively engage with the activities that they choose to go to and to walk away with a new level of awareness.
“We’re not all born with cultural awareness skills,” she said. “Those skills have to be developed and practiced, and one of the ways to do that is to have these conversations about diversity and inclusion and to consider what was presented and what you learned afterward. You will make mistakes along the way, but it is important to try.”