RICHLAND, Wash. – Washington State University Tri-Cities will host a series of “Community Classroom” learning opportunities on the topics of race, equity and engaged citizenship beginning Sept. 30.

The series will feature both presentations and opportunities for discussion. The events are free and open to the public and will be presented online via Zoom.

“We believe that together, we can become a community that is more empowered to lead anti-racist efforts,” said Kristine Cody, coordinator for the ���سԹ� MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion. “We commit to doing this by investing in and establishing a shared understanding of who we have been and who we want to be around race relations in our community.”

The Community Classroom presentations and discussions will focus on the following topics:

History of Civil Rights in the Tri-Cities – Past and Present

4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, via Zoom

Robert Bauman and Robert Franklin, both history faculty at ���سԹ�, will give a presentation on the history of African-American activism in the Tri-Cities from the 1940s-1970s. The presentation will highlight efforts to end racial segregation in the Tri-Cities, including civil rights marches in Kennewick and Pasco in the 1960s and 1970s. The presentation is based on material from their forthcoming book, “Echoes of Exclusion and Resistance: Voices from the Hanford Region,” which will be published by WSU Press in November.

This event will also welcome the following panelists: Reka Robinson, life coach and 99.1 radio personality; Daishaundra Loving-Hearne, co-CEO of the Urban Poets Society and organizer with the Black Lives Matter Coalition: Tri-Cities; and Naima Chambers-Smith, CEO of the Tri-Cities Diversity and Inclusion Council. They will talk about the advocacy efforts they are spearheading within the regional community around racial justice and how others can be a part of supporting the work.

Digital Dissensus: Discovering Truth in an Era of Misinformation

4 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, via Zoom

Are conspiracy theorists and anti-maskers anti-fact? Or is there a deeper dynamic at play? Mike Caulfield, director of blended and networked learning at WSU Vancouver and nationally recognized digital literacy expert, will discuss the roots of current “digital dissensus” and explain how approaches to education may be making the problem worse. How do we design education for a world where information is plentiful, and attention is the scarcity? How do we encourage analysis and engagement in our students without having those same impulses gamed by bad actors? What epistemic stances and heuristics serve the public in a world where expertise is niche and very little is directly verifiable, and where facts are atomized, separated from analysis, and reassembled in bizarre and dangerous ways?

Dismantling Racism: The Game of Change

11 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, via Zoom

This workshop/discussion will offer individuals the language and practices to shift view points from a majority group’s perspective to that of the marginalized group or groups. Discussions will be led by Thabiti Lewis, professor of English and interim associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at WSU Vancouver, and Dr. Marie Theard, director of neuroanesthesia in the department of anesthesiology at Oregon Health and Science University.

Strategies will be provided to faculty on identifying issues of bias and structural racism. Ways will be identified to reduce the systemic impact on resident and other faculty evaluations. Utilizing principles presented in work by Dr. Robert R. Gaiser on teaching professionalism focusing on subjects like reflective thinking, metacognition, and transformational learning in a small group interactive environment, individuals will learn to translate practices that are applicable to things like sports culture and daily life. Through the lens of medical education and popular culture, this presentation will explore how to address issues in academia and society.

The ���سԹ� Community Classroom events are presented by the MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion, Office of Academic Affairs, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee at ���سԹ�.

For more information, visit .

 

Media contacts:

Kristine Cody, ���سԹ� coordinator for MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion, 509-372-7600, kristine.cody@wsu.edu

Maegan Murray, ���سԹ� assistant director of marketing and communication, 619-403-3617, maegan_murray@wsu.edu

By Maegan Murray, ���سԹ�

RICHLAND, Wash. –  celebrated the grand opening of the MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion this month, welcoming students, faculty, staff and community members.

Like the pieces that comprise its name, MOSAIC, is a home to student resources to enhance equity and inclusion, a place to discover more about various cultures and a central location for students to dialogue and learn about current social issues.

“The MOSAIC Center is a success story of student advocacy and demonstrates the power of effective partnerships between students, faculty and staff who are all working toward a common goal of creating a more inclusive campus,” student affairs coordinator Kristine Cody said.

First introduced by Israa Alshaikhli, former president of the Associated Students of ���سԹ�, the project is coming to fruition under the leadership of Savanna Navarro Kresse, current vice president for ASWSUTC. The students worked directly with university administration, faculty and staff to start conversations on the importance of having a center focused on equity and inclusion, what that center could look like and how they could make the center a reality.

Last spring, ���سԹ� held a soft opening for the center, welcoming student input on what they would like to see in the center. Students, staff and faculty have since taken those comments to open a facility designed to be an open place for all. Based on this feedback, students will have access to workshops on social issues, a library on equity and diversity topics, book clubs, documentary showings on diversity-related topics, advocacy opportunities, celebrations and more.

“This is a place where no matter your race, ethnicity, nationality, sex, sexuality, or gender, you are fully welcomed,” Kresse said. “A place where we can feel comfortable conversing in our first language. A place where we can wear our traditional cultural attire without being stereotyped. This center is open to all students as a way to learn and grow together – a place where we can all authentically be ourselves.”

The grand opening featured opening remarks from Kresse; ���سԹ� Chancellor Sandra Haynes; Jill Creighton, WSU dean of students and associate vice president for campus life; and Jaime Nolan, WSU associate vice president for community, equity and inclusive excellence.

Haynes said she is proud of the way students worked together with the faculty, staff and administration to make their center a reality.

���سԹ� is the most diverse campus in the Washington State University system. The student population comprises more than 40 percent minority students and more than 40 percent of students are the first in their families to attend college.

“This is a space that will be representative of our student population and our ���سԹ� community long into the future,” Haynes said.

 

Media contacts:

Kristine Cody, ���سԹ� student affairs coordinator, 509-372-7600, kristine.cody@wsu.edu

Maegan Murray, ���سԹ� public relations specialist, 509-372-7333, maegan_murray@wsu.edu

By Maegan Murray, ���سԹ�

RICHLAND, Wash. – Regional community members, students, faculty and staff are invited to participate in a feedback session and workshop to identify goals for a new Washington State University Tri-Cities Center for Inclusion and Student Success from noon – 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, in Floyd 140.

During the whole event, individuals can drop by to share their thoughts on what inclusion means to them, what they want in an inclusion center, how they want the center to look and function, as well as what resources would allow for the greatest success for students and others who use the center.

At 1 p.m., ���سԹ� Chancellor Sandra Haynes will provide a short presentation, which will be followed by remarks by Mary Jo Gonzales, WSU Vice President of Student Affairs, as well as student leaders with the Associated Students of ���سԹ�.

Lunch will be provided from noon-2:00 p.m. as part of the event.

“After over a year of planning and listening to the campus community, we are very excited to make the center a reality,” said Chris Meiers, vice chancellor of student affairs. “This is a great opportunity for both our general and campus communities to provide their feedback for the fall opening and to celebrate this milestone for our campus.”

ASWSUTC Vice President Savanna Kresse said the center will provide an immense resource for students from a variety of backgrounds.

“This is a way for us to grow inclusivity efforts at ���سԹ� by having a space for students to authentically be themselves and to ensure that they get the resources they need,” she said. “The Inclusion Center also allows students to share and celebrate their diversity as well as connect with others who are both similar and different from themselves.”

The Center for Inclusion and Student Success is set to open in Fall of 2019.

 

Media contacts:

Chris Meiers, ���سԹ� vice chancellor for student affairs, 509-372-7381, chris.meiers@wsu.edu

Maegan Murray, ���سԹ� public relations specialist, 509-372-7333, maegan_murray@wsu.edu

By Maegan Murray, ���سԹ�

RICHLAND, Wash. – Boeing executive Fariba Alamdari will present on her path to success by means of embracing her own diversity as part of a lecture at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 15, in the East Auditorium at Washington State University Tri-Cities.

Alamdari serves as the vice president of of the Boeing Global Learning Institute. She joined Boeing in 2006 after serving as chair of the department of air transport and dean of the faculty of engineering, manufacturing and science at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom.

As a woman and an immigrant originally from Tehran, Iran, she said she sees herself and all immigrants as assets, not liabilities. She said she resolved, at a very early age, to ensure her father would not suffer because he had a daughter as a middle child and that he would be very proud of her.

“In a world in which many are raised to believe that our workplaces are responsible for raising us up, recognizing our value and promoting us accordingly, we are missing a key step in diversity and inclusion efforts,” she said. “When we are fully accountable for our successes, when we own our value and express our capabilities, the ‘system’ will advance and support us so we can do the work we are most called to do. If we wait for inclusion to come to us, we may wait a lifetime.”

Alamdari is the recipient of several awards including “Woman of the Year” by Air Transport News in 2016, “Ellis Island Medal of Honor” from The National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations in 2016, the “Leadership Award” from the Centre for Women and Democracy in 2015, the “Professional Award” from Career Communication Group, Inc., in 2011, and the “Professional Practice Recognition Award” from State University of New York Institute of Technology School of Business in 2010.

She received a Ph.D. and a master’s degree from Cranfield University. She resides in the Seattle area with her family.

By Maegan Murray, ���سԹ�

RICHLAND, Wash. – For student Lian Jacquez, finding the ideal university fit was a bit of a challenge – that is, until he arrived at Washington State University Tri-Cities.

Originally from eastern Oregon, he attended a university located in his home state, but found that the decision was an expensive one and more based on impulse than it was in finding a good fit for where he was at in his life.

But after his parents moved to the Tri-Cities, he decided to move back in with them so he could save money, but could also find a university that would allow him to pursue his passions. He decided to attend ���سԹ� and it ended up being one of the best decisions he has made to date.

Whether it be interacting and learning from his professors through tight-knit classes, to participating in a variety of clubs, to participating in student government, to finding the perfect job on campus, Jacquez said he feels like he has found a home at ���سԹ�.

“���سԹ� is a hidden gem,” he said. “We are located in an area that offers great opportunities without a lot of the competition that one might experience at a much larger university. And the people who work here – our faculty, administration, staff and everyone behind the scenes – are here to make sure we all succeed. We, as students, aren’t just a number or another name on the roster.”

Majoring in digital technology and culture –  a focus on the creative

Jacquez found his ideal major at ���سԹ� after taking the MyMajors Quiz on the university website. He was recommended to study digital technology and culture, elementary education and psychology.

“Out of the three, digital technology and culture, or DTC as we call it, resonated with me and made me the most excited to pursue, and I always imagined doing something in design,” he said.

Through the digital technology and culture program, Jacquez is learning about graphic design, photography, video production, sound production, media and technical writing and much more in the creative sphere. With his experience in the program, he said he initially wanted to pursue a career as a graphic designer. But after working more with individuals on campus and speaking with people in similar creative industries, he realizes he now wants to pursue a career as a creative director or program coordinator.

“Being the person creating the work is fun, but being able to establish a concept, all of its components and tracking it from beginning to end is more appealing,” he said.

Jacquez said he loves the creative freedom that he and all the other students in the DTC program have.

“There are guidelines and requirements, but we have creative reign to create something that is an extension of ourselves,” he said.

Varied campus experiences to fit every student

In addition to his experience in the DTC program, Jacquez is a student ambassador for the office of admissions on campus, is director of diversity affairs for the

Associated Students of ���سԹ� (student government), is vice president of the World Research Club on campus, in addition to serving as a member of the Queers and Allies Club.

He said since coming to ���سԹ�, he feels he can really make his academic and student life experience his own.

Through his experiences with the student clubs, he is able to truly connect with his peers and organize programming and events to benefit his fellow students. Through his role with student government, he is able to extend and create initiatives so that all students on campus feel connected with the resources to make them successful. And through his role as a student ambassador with the office of admissions, he is able to communicate and inspire prospective students who express an interest in attending ���سԹ�, giving them a genuine look into what his life as a student on campus looks like.

As director of diversity affairs with ASWSUTC, he said he values opportunities created on campus that directly benefit students, including a range of student resources: access services, counseling, a student pantry called Cougar Cupboard, the veteran center and being able to connect with the international student coordinator – both to see about options for studying abroad and to connect with international students. Another example is the UndocuQueer Conference that is being held this year on the ���سԹ� campus.

“I am really excited to learn more about the intersections of the LGBTQ and undocumented communities and the people who are affected by them,” he said. “This will be my first time attending the conference.”

Career connections

In addition to his job in the admissions office on campus, Jacquez said there are also a variety of resources to help students connect with prestigious internships at ���سԹ� and in the community.

Last spring, after participating in the campus Career Development Etiquette Dinner where students are connected to professionals for an evening of networking through dinner, he met an an internship coordinator who connected him with an internship at the National Park Service. He now works as an interpretive specialist for the Manhattan Project National Historical Park.

He also hopes to land another internship before he graduates, which he aims to get connected with through ���سԹ�.

The connections at ���سԹ�, he said, are truly what has allowed him to get involved with many of these opportunities on campus.

“I love how incredibly diverse the campus is and the fact that not everyone is a stranger, thanks to the size of ���سԹ�,” he said.

For more information on the ���سԹ� Digital Technology and Culture program, visit tricities.wsu.edu/dtc.