Welcome back. Welcome home. Welcome here! With the spring semester and spring around the corner, we are reemerging from our January newsletter hiatus and looking forward to being in community, planning events, and continuing important conversations on campus.
Updates
The Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation took place on Monday, January 20th. The featured speaker, Dr. Jeanine Abrams McLean, is the Vice President of Fair Count. The goal of Fair Count is to facilitate and ensure a fair and accurate count during the 2020 Census in Georgia and nationally. Every 10 years the census undercounts certain populations because they may be hard to locate, hard to contact, hard to persuade, or hard to interview. Often these populations are immigrants, people of color, small children, renters, low income people, undocumented persons, or people who move around a lot. Fair Count is committed to finding and engaging these populations because an undercount directly results in their loss of services, investments, and political power. In her speech, Dr. Abrams McLean made the connections between the civil rights work of Dr. King, the civic participation work of Fair Count, and the work we at Centre should do as good citizens. Please click the "Marching Ahead" button below to learn from and be inspired by Dr. Abrams McLean’s work and words.
Recap
The Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service celebrates 25 years this year. The holiday observing Dr. King was promoted by his wife, the late Coretta Scott King in 1986. The first Day of Service was promoted by Senator Harris Wofford and Congressman John Lewis in 1994. The federal legislation challenges Americans to transform the holiday into a day of volunteerism to serve their communities.
To Centre, this day means that we are following the tradition of many other institutions in reclaiming the history of Dr. King and reclaiming his legacy; Dr. King was devoted to the community, the beloved community, and it’s important to keep that tradition alive.
This year, we partnered with the Office of Community Service, and the collaboration was easy and successful. We had more sites than last year, six total, and over 90 participants. We actually had to close registration early because we exceeded the volunteer capacity of all six of our sites.
On January 18th, the Saturday before Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, participants gathered in the Ewen room for a breakfast at 8am, followed by a welcome from President Roush and an address from Ashley Oliver (Director of Diversity and Inclusion) about the purpose of the day. The Community Service Office, Jessie Weasner (Director) and Sophia Lombardo (Coordinator), then introduced sites and site leaders and dismissed the groups. 12 students acted as Site Leaders who helped facilitate discussions on service and the needs of the Danville/Boyle County community. Volunteers then worked from 9am-11:30am and came back to Ewen to eat lunch and debrief their morning’s service.
You can view the service conducted at each site at this link.
Quick Takes
Interested in being more involved with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion? Check our Diversity Updates page for an events calendar, information about programming, and the ODI Matters archives.
- In a colossal cross-campus collaboration, we've compiled student resources in one, easy-to-find location on Centre's website! From academic advising to the Writing Center, and everything in between, you can find information, resources, and contacts to help you be successful at Centre.
- The Boyle County African American Historical Society is organizing several events in Danville to celebrate Black History Month! Check out their article in the Advocate-Messenger for more information.
- The Shepherd's House in Danville is accepting donations of dress clothing in good condition. If you have a donation, please drop it off at their location (454 S 3rd Street) sometime during their hours: Monday through Friday from 8:00a to 4:00p.
- Out of My Mind Meditation Center is a non-profit (non-religious-not-affiliated with any group or organization) safe space to teach and learn meditation, to attend classes and workshops focused on personal and spiritual development and to find support in all forms of recovery. Located at 110 North Second Street here in Danville, OOMM has a variety of free/pay-as-you-can programming, open hours, and opportunities to be what you need it to be. You can find their schedule, more information and contact information on their facebook page.
Title IX Corner
The Title IX Office had four interns for Centreterm. What have they been up to?
- Olivia Burke is researching and compiling information on the role of advocacy in Title IX work. She has been reaching out to campuses across the nation to find what might work best for Centre and it's students.
- Melissa Collins worked with Admissions and Athletics to implement a training for overnight hosts to ensure the safety of our prospective students when they visit campus. Melissa also worked on scheduling a variety of events for Sexual Assualt Awareness and Prevention Month in April! Look our for that calendar soon!
- Katie Freeman worked with Mindy Wilson in the CCPD on a workplace harassment information campaign for our student interns. She continued to update the Title IX website (www.centre.edu/endsexualmisconduct) with new resources and information to support survivors. Check out her changes if you haven't yet.
- Emily Shields worked with Rebecca Amsler, Assistant Controller, in the Finance Office to create a Financial Wellness Program covering topics like building credit, loan repayment, budgeting, and more. She continued to collaborate with community partners like Ampersand to bring needed resources to the Centre community.
In January, we offered several workshops and trainings to a variety of campus groups like our RAs, Greek organizations, and faculty and staff.
In February, the office is beginning our Healthy Relationship campaign. Keep an eye out for the flyers around campus with conversation hearts and information on identifying unhealthy relationships with friends and partners.
The office would also like to advertise for SPEAC. Joining SPEAC is based on a rolling application process. They'd love to welcome any interested new members or welcome returning members back from their time abroad! You can apply at this link.
HERConnect
Register for the HERC member community portal, HERConnect, where Centre employees can access all the HERC tools and resources and also engage in community conversation, ask questions, get ideas, etc. from other HERC member institutions.
February Webinar: Maximizing Your Membership with HERConnect
When: Feb 13, 2020 from 10:00 AM to 10:30 AM (PT)
Associated with Global HERC Community
Gather your colleagues from human resources, diversity and inclusion, and academic affairs for this short overview of HERC member benefits.
You'll learn:
- How to utilize webinars, blog posts, and links to resources to augment your inclusive recruitment and retention practices;
- Where to access data on your posted jobs;
- Which HERConnect communities to plug into;
- How HERC advances your OFCCP compliance;
- How other campuses are utilizing HERC to build bridges between their human resources, academic affairs, and diversity and inclusion offices.
Equip yourself, and your institution, to get the most out of your HERC membership!
Other News
Centre is being highlighted nationally in a HERC blogpost about being the lead institution for the Greater Kentucky HERC. Read more in the article below, to be made public shortly.
新年快乐! Chúc Mừng Năm Mới! 새해 복 많이 받으세요! Happy Lunar New Year!
The Lunar New Year arrived on Saturday, January 25, this year, but Chinese Club plans to celebrate with an event shortly after Spring Term begins so that those who were away during Centre Term can also enjoy the festivities. Look for a Cowan Banner to announce more details.
Intercultural Ball 2020
In January 2019, the International Student Services Office and many student organizations partnered together to host Centre's first Intercultural Ball. The event celebrated Centre's wide array of cultures through food, dance, music, and conversation. This year's Intercultural Ball will take place on February 22, 2020 in Evans-Lively from 8-11PM. Please stay tuned for more information.
Religious Life
Other News
You can view the Religious Life Office's web page from the link below to see more information about local congregations, religious fellowship on campus, and religious holidays & activities. For more information about Religious Life, please contact Dr. Rick Axtell at rick.axtell@centre.edu.
Calendar
Visit our ODI Calendar to see events, holidays, and important dates. You can view this calendar and our archives of ODI Matters at our Centrenet Site.
February 9, JCPenney Suit-Up Event, 4:00p-7:00p at Danville JCPenney. Special sale on career apparel, shoes, and accessories. Students, faculty, and staff of Centre College are welcome to attend. Please bring your Centre ID with you. Trained store staff will be on hand to do measurements, give advice, and help you find what you need. Sponsored by Center for Career & Professional Development.
February 13, Press Lecture: Talking About the Past, Diversity and Inclusion Convocation, 7:00p, Newlin Hall. Annette Gordon-Reed is the Charles Warren Professor of American Legal History at Harvard Law School and a Professor of History in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. Gordon-Reed won sixteen book prizes, including the Pulitzer Prize in History in 2009 and the National Book Award in 2008, for The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family (W.W. Norton, 2008). In addition to articles and reviews, her other works include Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: An American Controversy (UVA Press, 1997).
February 14-16, Diversity, Service, and Leadership Weekend, hosted by the Admission Office. This weekend is meant to bring prospective students interested in diversity, equity, and inclusion to campus, and engage them in critical conversations important to our community.
February 15, Difficult Conversations: Focus on Honest Self Expression, 1:00p-5:00p, for students. Be empowered to stand up for yourself while empathically engaging with others through experiential learning. Increase your agility in conflict, enhance your ability to engage in authentic encounters with others and learn tools for engaging in relationships involving power differentials.
Self-Expression and Honesty: Learn new skills for being honest without hurting others. Learn to find ways of practicing authenticity that feels true to who you are while maintaining connection with others.
Focus on Dealing with Difficult People: Learn new strategies for managing your own emotions triggered in conflict situations, finding alternative ways of responding that have a greater likelihood to create understanding rather than more conflict. Learn how to find compassion for people who are hard to love.
This workshop is based on the principles of nonviolent communication developed by Marshall Rosenberg and inspired by the principles of non-violence espoused by Martin Luther King Jr, and Mahatma Gandhi and is being used globally. All are welcome who are interested in being empowered to live out of a deeper empathy and human connection. You will engage in exercises to deepen, broaden and focus your empathic skills as well as learn a map for navigating difficult conversations. These skills have been used to enhance effectiveness in personal relationships, couple relationships, business meetings, as well as high conflict negotiations.
February 19, Turn up @ the Suite, 11:30a-12:30p in the Intercultural Suite, second floor of Campus Center. Whether you've never been to the Intercultural Suite before or you spend all of your free time there, drop in to say hello, check out our library, and hang out with staff from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. We will have snacks and ODI swag, and we'll be on hand to discuss our ongoing projects for this year.
February 20, World Day of Social Justice, recognized by the United Nations. Learn more at their website.
February 22, Intercultural Ball. 8:00p-11:00p, Evans-Lively. Stay tuned for more information.
February 24, Pathways to Diversity, Diversity and Inclusion Convocation, 7:00p, Weisiger Theatre. A facilitated, but unfiltered, panel discussion amongst Black alumni and current Black students regarding their experiences at Centre College, preceded by a description of the “Pathways to Diversity” project. This project seeks to develop and sustain a website of materials and oral histories related to desegregation at select southern institutions. Student interns will present highlights from the curated archival collection. The interviews and archival works include interviews of the first black students’ experiences integrating Centre and the panel discussion will continue that conversation by engaging later generations of Black Centre students on the experience of attending a predominantly white college. The perspectives on diversity and inclusion at Centre are of critical importance and this convo will allow for reflection on how generational (classes from 1964-1980 vs. 2020), regional (KY compared to Boston) and ethnic (US born, West Indian, African) differences do or do not make a difference.
February 27, Views on Coups - When is a Coup a Coup and Why Does it Matter? Diversity and Inclusion Convocation, 7:00p, Weisiger Theatre. 2019 was an eventful year with notable protests erupting in Algeria, Bolivia, Chile, Sudan, Iran, and Hong Kong. However, while states like Chile have seen the president grant significant concessions in an effort to quell protests, others like Sudan, Algeria, and Bolivia have seen the removal of the head of state, with the military playing at least some role. But how should we label such events and why does it matter? Two civil-military relations experts, Dr. Jonathan Powell, Associate Professor at the University of Central Florida and Dr. Rebecca Schiel, a postdoctoral researcher at the Chr. Michelsen Institute and University of Central Florida, tackle these questions. Using contemporary and historical cases, they explain ‘when a coup is a coup’ and explore the conditions under which these events may usher in democracy and when the trajectory is more uncertain. Dr. Faulkner and Dr. Johnson will also join to answer questions about ongoing civil-military relations crises.
This calendar is meant to capture events on campus addressing issues of diversity, inclusion, and equity. It is not an exhaustive list. If you have events in upcoming months that you would like to see featured, please email them to Jo Teut at jo.teut@centre.edu prior to the 25th of each month.