Conversations to Inform and Move to Action Together

Beyond Brave Spaces: Conversations to Inform & Move to Action Together Pt.1

Not Just COVID: Examining the Centuries of Health Care Inequities and Racial Trauma

Date & Time: Wed, August 5, 2020 from 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EDT

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How is Racism a public health issue and education crisis? Join the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for part one of two live events where participants will learn from top local and national experts about these timely issues that cannot be ignored. Speakers will share their knowledge and how applying an equity lens can make positive and sustainable differences.

Sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in collaboration with the Robert Larner College of Medicine.

This session creates space to:

  • Explore the history of racial disparities in health care
  • Examine racial trauma and the impact on mental health
  • Explain how to move to action together
  • Address audience questions

Moderator

  • Dr. Wanda Heading-Grant (she/her/her) is the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion provides strategic vision, integrated leadership, and administrative oversight for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at the University of Vermont (UVM). The Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion reports to the President and advises senior leadership on essential policies, programs, and strategies to achieve inclusive excellence and to ensure that all who are in and a part of the university community receive the support necessary to thrive. Units reporting to the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion include the Center for Cultural Pluralism; Interfaith Center; the Mosaic Center for Students of Color; the Prism Center; and the Women and Gender Equity Center. These units work collaboratively across campus to build and sustain a culture of inclusivity for faculty, staff, and students. The Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is also a part of the Provost’s Executive Team and supports the work of the President's Commission for Inclusive Excellence.

Session Presenters

  • Dr. Marissa N. Coleman is a Clinical Psychologist at the University of Vermont Medical Center. She also serves on the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Steering Committee at UVMMC and as a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at The University of Vermont. Dr. Coleman provides training, psychotherapy, and consulting services in English and Spanish. She has been a speaker at international conferences and media outlets including International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies, Columbia University, WCAX, ABC5, iHeart Radio, and CNN Español. Utilizing her expertise in traumatology and liberation psychologies, she seeks to contribute to local capacity building, infrastructure development, and culturally grounded approaches to what is considered “best practice” in the areas of mental health and psychological well-being.
  • Dr. C. Brandon Ogbunu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale University. His scientific research uses experimental evolution, mathematical modeling, and computational biology to better understand the underlying causes and consequences of disease, across scale. Ogbunu is also a science writer and social justice advocate whose work has focused on the intersection between science and culture.
  • Dr. Jan K. Carney is Professor of Medicine & Associate Dean for Public Health and Health Policy at the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont. She received her MD from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. She is Board Certified in Internal Medicine & Preventive Medicine and Public Health. In 1988 she was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Health for the State of Vermont and became Commissioner of Health the following year, serving under Governors Madeline Kunin, Richard Snelling and Howard Dean, until 2003, when she joined UVM as a full-time faculty member. Carney is a Distinguished Educator in the Teaching Academy and developed Vermont’s first Master of Public Health degree and other graduate-level public health programs–all online–in partnership with UVM Continuing and Distance Education. She directs the Rural Health Research and Delivery Core for the Northern New England Clinical and Translational Research Network, working to engage clinicians, communities, and public health advocates in the development of research relevant to rural health needs. Dr. Carney was recently named a Master of the American College of Physician (MACP). She Carney recently served as vice-chair of the American College of Physicians’ Health and Public Policy Committee, contributing to health policy publications in areas of social determinants of health, insurance coverage, and patient partnership in health care. At UVM, she initiated and co-led the university’s transition to becoming a smoke-free campus in 2015. She is the author of a public health textbook, Controversies in Public Health and Health Policy.

Beyond Brave Spaces: Conversations to Inform & Move to Action Together Pt.2

Pandemic Pods, Hybrid Schedules, and Remote Instruction: Solutions or Perpetuating Inequities?

Date & Time: Thu, August 6, 2020 from 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EDT

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How is Racism a public health issue and education crisis? Join the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for part two of two live events where participants will learn from top local and national experts about these timely issues that cannot be ignored. Speakers will share their knowledge and how applying an equity lens can make positive and sustainable differences.

Sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in collaboration with the College of Education and Social Services.

This session creates space to:

  • Explore the history of PK-12 schools in America
  • Examine racial disparities in PK-12 schools in America
  • Explain how to move to action together
  • Address audience questions

Moderator

  • Dr. Tiffanie Spencer (she/her/hers) currently serves as the Director for Diversity and Community Engagement in the College of Education and Social Services (CESS). Her role provides leadership in facilitating community partnerships to expand diversity initiatives for the college, with emphasis on collaborating with local and national organizations, as well as on-campus colleagues to develop accessible pathways for University of Vermont students, faculty, and staff from historically underrepresented backgrounds. She also serves as a lecturer and affiliate faculty member of the CESS Higher Education and Student Affairs Master’s program. Prior to joining the UVM community, she earned a doctorate from the Institute of Higher Education at the University of Georgia. During her time there she worked with the Georgia College Advising Corps, an institutional partner of a national nonprofit that trains recent college undergraduates to assist students of underserved high schools with their postsecondary search and selection process. Her research interests align with much of recent work, which focuses on examining transition pathways and experiences of first generation, low-income, and underrepresented students from secondary to postsecondary educational opportunities. Prior to her time at the University of Georgia, Tiffanie has devoted much of her profession to higher education student affairs work in capacities including Residence Life, Student Conduct, Student Organization advisement, as well as student advising as part of an empowerment and retention program focused on working with underrepresented student populations. Tiffanie received her Master’s of Education in Higher Education Management with a concentration in Student Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at the University of Notre Dame.

Session Presenters

  • Dr. Cynthia Reyes is a faculty member in the College of Education & Social Services at the University of Vermont where she developed and coordinates the Education for Cultural and Diversity (ECLD) Minor program. She also teaches a university-required race and racism in the U.S. course, and a service learning course. Her research and teaching currently focuses on critical and humanizing research with families and students with refugee experiences. She is co-principal investigator for a study that seeks to support intentional partnerships between families and schools. In addition, her projects intersect various areas in education: literacy for emergent bilingual English learners, anti-racist teaching, and educational policy for English learners. Prior to higher education, she taught in a bilingual (Spanish/English) classroom in the Chicago Public Schools and she also taught English as a second Language courses in adult education. She currently serves on the Vermont Advisory Board for Ethnic Studies for the VT State Agency of Education. She has a co-edited book on public scholarship in education and has published in various journals including Research in the Teaching of English, Qualitative Report, Reading Teacher, Journal of Teaching and Teacher Education and Middle School Journal.
  • Dr. Lance Smith is an Associate Professor and coordinator of the graduate Counseling Program. His research and scholarship deals with issues connected to social equity and liberation: examining implicit bias within the field of counseling, measuring critical consciousness, evaluating the implementation of restorative practices in schools, and facilitating youth participatory action research that disrupts the status quo. A UVM Kroepsch-Maurice Excellence in Teaching Award winner, Lance endeavors to train and inspire counselors to be threats to inequity within their spheres of influence.
  • Paul Suk-Hyun Yoon (he/him/his), Senior Advisor for Strategic Diversity Assessment and Research, Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the University of Vermont Paul serves as Senior Advisor to the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the University of Vermont (UVM). Paul contributes to strategic institutional discussions and planning, assists in designing, supporting, and implementing innovative programs, policies, and practices that promote inclusive excellence, stimulate a climate and culture of inclusivity, encourage full participation in university life, and helps encourage courageous conversations about institutional inequities. In addition to his work at UVM, Paul is also a Partner with CQ Strategies, LLC a Vermont-based consultancy that helps organizations become more culturally proficient through training, education, resources, and on-going support. Earlier in his career, Paul taught at the secondary level and was a school-based administrator at both the secondary and middle level.

Beyond Brave Spaces: Conversations to Inform & Move to Action Together Pt.3

One College's Journey to Inspire Hope by Addressing Power, Privilege, & Oppression

Date & Time: Tue, September 29, 2020 from 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT

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How do you create a positive classroom culture when addressing power, privilege, and oppression in college-level courses? Please join the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Part Three of four live events where participants will hear from top scholars and instructors about creating learning spaces where both students and faculty can thrive and be successful.

Sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in collaboration with the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources and Continuing and Distance Education.

This session creates space to:

  • Explain why it is important to create an inclusive and supportive learning environment for faculty, staff, and students
  • Explore how to address power, privilege, and oppression in undergraduate and graduate level courses
  • Examine how power, privilege, and oppression can be woven into curriculum
  • Address audience questions

Moderator

  • Dr. Sherwood Smith

Session Presenters

  • Matt Kolan is a senior lecturer and the founding director of the Leadership for Sustainability Master’s Program; a practice-based low residency program that explores leadership inspired by the wisdom of nature and challenges forces of domination, extraction and colonization. Matt’s research and teaching explores endangered and emergent leadership practices that align with the wisdom of nature; engage complexity and multiple ways of knowing; challenge domination and oppression; and center love, well-being and learning. Matt was the winner of the Kroepsch-Maurice Excellence in Teaching Award in 2016 and the Outstanding Ally Award for working across difference in 2013. Matt also partners with and provides advising, coaching and consulting to many organizations that are committed to deep equity and creating conditions for all life to thrive.
  • Marie Vea is a proud Filipinx-American in her 21st year living in the Green Mountain State with a passion for radically inclusive education, multiple ways of knowing, joy, and cross-country skiing. She currently serves as Assistant Dean for Student Services and Staff Development in the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Vermont, working with staff, faculty, and students toward building a community where all beings are safe and thrive. It’s not easy and it’s vitally important work. After 25 years of experience in higher education there is no more compelling time than right now to ask herself, “How do I meet this moment with courage, vulnerability, and creativity?”
  • Trish O'Kane is an environmental educator and journalist who uses community-based teaching to promote justice. Dr. Trish O’Kane directs the “Birding for Change” program at the UVM in partnership with the Burlington School District. Before studying the natural sciences, Trish worked as a human and civil rights investigative journalist in Central America and the Deep South. In Alabama, she conducted research on white supremacist groups for the Southern Poverty Law Center. She also worked for Rev. C.T. Vivian at the Center for Democratic Renewal in Atlanta, GA.

Beyond Brave Spaces: Conversations to Inform & Move to Action Together Pt.4

An Imperative: Addressing Barriers and Growing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEM to Advance Innovation and Solutions

Date & Time: Wed, September 30, 2020 from 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT

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How do you end the historically exclusionary systems within STEM for women and BIPOC communities? Join the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the final part of four live events where participants will learn from top local and national scholars and experts about engaging and supporting underrepresented identities in STEM.

Sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in collaboration with the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences and Continuing and Distance Education.

This session creates space to:

  • Discuss what opportunities exist when persistence and deliberate pathways are created for BIPOC and women to advance in STE
  • Explain how to nurture and accelerate BIPOC and women’s engagement and success in STEM
  • Explore how systemic racism and sexism impede BIPOC and women in STEM
  • Examine the role that administrators, faculty, staff, and mentors play in eliminating barriers and fostering inclusive excellence in STEM
  • Address audience questions

Moderator

  • Dr. Wanda Heading-Grant is the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion provides strategic vision, integrated leadership, and administrative oversight for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at the University of Vermont (UVM). The Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion reports to the President and advises senior leadership on essential policies, programs, and strategies to achieve inclusive excellence and to ensure that all who are in and a part of the university community receive the support necessary to thrive. Units reporting to the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion include the Center for Cultural Pluralism; Interfaith Center; the Mosaic Center for Students of Color; the Prism Center; and the Women and Gender Equity Center. These units work collaboratively across campus to build and sustain a culture of inclusivity for faculty, staff, and students. The Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is also a part of the Provost’s Executive Team and supports the work of the President's Commission for Inclusive Excellence.

Session Presenters

  • Dr. Suresh Garimella became the 27th president of the University of Vermont on July 1, 2019.

    A seasoned administrator and an accomplished educator and researcher, Dr. Garimella previously led complex and expansive portfolios at Purdue University, a top-ranked, flagship research university as Purdue’s inaugural Executive Vice President for Research and Partnerships.

    In 2018, Dr. Garimella was appointed by President Trump to the National Science Board. The co-author of over 525 widely cited archival publications and 13 patents, Dr. Garimella is an expert in micro- and nano-scale transport phenomena, thermal management and energy efficiency in electronics systems, and renewable and sustainable energy systems technology and policy.

    Dr. Garimella served as a Jefferson Science Fellow at the U.S. Department of State and was a senior fellow of the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA).

    Dr. Garimella serves in editorial roles with leading energy-related journals. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), and has received numerous awards in recognition of his educational, research and service contributions.

    Dr. Garimella received his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley, an M.S. from The Ohio State University, and a bachelor’s degree from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras.

  • Dr. Linda Schadler, Dean of the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences & Professor. Linda graduated from Cornell University in 1985 with a B.S. in materials science and engineering and received a PhD in materials science and engineering in 1990 from the University of Pennsylvania. After two years of post-doctoral work at IBM Yorktown Heights, Schadler served as a faculty member at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA before spending 22 years at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

    Schadler is an experimentalist and her research focuses on the mechanical, optical, and electrical behavior of nanofilled polymer composites. She has co-authored more than 180 journal publications, several book chapters, and one book. Dr. Schadler is a Fellow of the Materials Research Society and ASM International. She is a former member of ASM International's Board of Trustees and the National Materials Advisory Board. She is a current member of the Materials Research Society’s Board of Directors.

  • Marie Worsham Banks, ‘96 BSME is currently a Sr. Network Engineer for Verizon. She served as an officer for two years of the Black Student Union at UVM and continues to do social justice work in every community she has lived with an emphasis on education and self-empowerment. Marie is a widow of six years with two daughters, Christen (13) and Luaryn (8) and is currently living in Farmington Hills, MI

  • Dr. Melissa Pespeni is an Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Vermont, Director of Quantitative and Evolutionary STEM Training (QuEST) PhD program, and recent recipient of the prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER Award. Dr. Pespeni is an evolutionary biologist whose work aims to understand how organisms adapt to current and future environmental conditions. In her work with QuEST and as faculty of underrepresented identities, Dr. Pespeni aims to shift the dialogues in higher education towards asset-based action.