I was delighted when the Institute’s Vice-President of Academic Affairs, Jeff Dayton-Johnson, agreed to formalize diversity, equity, and inclusion at MIIS by creating the position of Chief Diversity Officer. This is a huge step for our community. Not only does this signify an institutional commitment to addressing discrimination and marginalization issues on our campus, but also provides hope of us proactively working to make the institute more inclusive and equitable.
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Thank you to everyone who took the time to participate in our survey “Naming the Diversity Newsletter at MIIS.” As you probably have noted, I decided to go with the title: “The Black Mirror: Reflecting on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” Continue reading
Diversity may be the hardest thing for a society
to live with, and perhaps the most dangerous
thing for a society to be without.
–William Sloane Coffin Jr.
In our first issue of “The Black Mirror”, we asked key administrators to share with us their perspectives, vision, and concerns about diversity and inclusion at MIIS. Read on to see what Jeff Dayton-Johnson, Rebecca Henriksen, Laura Burian, and Fernando DePaolis had to say. Continue reading
Since much of my work as a CDO will include continuing Allies at MIIS, I think it might be helpful to explain the origins and nature of the initiative. It is also possible that Allies at MIIS could turn into a model for future actions on diversity and inclusion on our campus. Continue reading
In this section, we will highlight the work being done by various members of our community to further diversity, equity, and inclusion on our campus. Below, we present the work of Sara Bidgood, CNS, Pushpa Iyer, GSIPM and three student clubs – Queers and Allies at MIIS, MIIS Immigrant Rights Alliance, and African Nations Club.
This section presents personal stories and experiences of some of our community members. In our inaugural issue we highlight Dollie Pope, JinHuei Dai, Elizabeth Fisher, and Jacob Dwyer. Continue reading
How can you be an ally? Being an ally means being responsible and accountable to yourself first and foremost before using advocacy or activism to correct what you see as “wrong” in the environment around you. Continue reading
You’ve heard of cultural appropriation, but have you heard of poverty appropriation? Like cultural appropriation, poverty appropriation is tied to the power, privilege, and the choice of the dominant culture to co-opt elements of a marginalized group for their own profit, entertainment, and/or benefit — examples include distressed clothing, tiny houses, and “cheap” food. We have summarized below some of the main arguments for and against poverty appropriation. After reading, please fill out this brief survey and tell us what you think. Continue reading
News coming out of other Higher Education Campuses is very interesting to our work on diversity and inclusion. The Harvard Lawsuit case is one that is relevant to some of our discussions on campus about how to attract minority students and build more diversity. The HEED award is something to strive for – hopefully, one day we will have our name up there as a recipient! Continue reading
Here are some books and films community members think you might enjoy! Continue reading
