2:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Pre-conference Workshops

Workshop #1

Risk, Resiliency, and Retention: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender College Students
While some institutions acknowledge the presence of sexual minority students on their campuses, few know the needs of these students. This interactive presentation explored the lives and experiences of these students to provide an understanding of their language, behaviors, and stressors, and how those areas affect their academic achievement and success in college.
Ronni L. Sanlo, Director, Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Campus Resource Center; Faculty in Residence, University of California -Los Angeles

Workshop #2

Multicultural Competence in Higher Education
Raechele L. Pope, Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy, University of Buffalo, and Amy L. Reynolds, Staff Psychologist, Counseling Center, Buffalo State College

Workshop #3

Women Leading for Change: Cultural Identity as a Tool for Empowerment
Nancy "Rusty" Barcelo, Vice President for Minority Affairs, University of Washington, and Patricia M. Lowrie, Director Women's Resource Center, Michigan State University

Workshop #4

Diversity Counts: Assessing and Improving Diversity Initiatives (pdf)
This workshop focused on the essential components of effective assessment and improvement for diversity initiatives. Participants examined core definitions, goals, and the kinds of activities and programs to be assessed, as well as strategies for aligning assessment and improvement across three levels: program effectiveness, learning outcomes, and institutional effectiveness. Victor Borden, Associate Vice Chancellor for Information Management, Pamela C. Brown, Enrollment Specialist, and Natasha Flowers, Director, Office for Multicultural Professional Development,Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis

Workshop #5

The Next Generation of Transformational Work: New Agreements for Teaching and Learning
Laura I. Rendon, Veffie Milstead Jones Endowed Chair, California State University Long Beach

7:00 - 8:30 p.m.

Opening Plenary

Making Excellence Inclusive: The Next Generation of Institutional Transformation
This plenary session introduced AAC&U’s planned initiative, Making Excellence Inclusive, designed to help colleges and universities fully leverage diversity and inclusion to ensure both high academic achievement and deep learning for all students. Jeffrey F. Milem discussed evidence in support of inclusive excellence, particularly recent research undertaken in support of affirmative action in higher education (ppt), and how this evidence can inform institutional practices.
Alma R. Clayton-Pedersen, Vice President of Education and Institutional Renewal, AAC&U , Estela Bensimon, Director of the Center for Urban Education, University of Southern California, and Jeffery F. Milem, Associate Professor and Director, Higher Education Administration Graduate Program, University of Maryland

8:30 - 10:00 p.m.

Poster Sessions and Reception

Preparing Students for Diverse Classrooms
Paul A. Flores, Director of Liberal Education, and Ivy Yee-Sakamoto, Associate Professor, Education, Azusa Pacific University

Student Leadership in Loyola Marymount University's Dialogue on Diversity: Creating a Community for Exchange
Alejandro Mares, Student Coordinator, Dialogue on Diversity, Marjorie Argueta, Student Coordinator, Dialogue on Diversity, and Kathleen Harris, Director, Dialogue on Diversity and Beyond, Loyola Marymount University

MAXIMUS Ticket To Work Program (ppt)
This poster session featured the new Social Security Administration's Ticket to Work (pdf) and Self-Sufficiency Program. As the centerpiece of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 and President Bush's New Freedom Initiative, the goal of this Program is to provide greater choices in services for people with disabilities to attain employment while providing additional financial incentives to service providers. The Autumn 2004 Ticket to Work newsletter was shared with participants. (pdf)
Valerie Briggs, Marketing Supervisor, MAXIMUS Ticket To Work Program

Diversity and Evaluation: Creating a Culture of Evidence
Alice Y. Hom, Director, Intercultural Community Center, Occidental College

Including Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered Issues in Business Curriculum
Julie A. Gedro, Assistant Professor, Business, Management & Economics, SUNY Empire State College

Maneuvering the Postsecondary Education Maze for Students with Disabilities
Pamela M. Ekpone, Director, HEATH Resource Center, The George Washington University

Cultural Voices: Perceptions of Faculty, Staff, Students, and Community (ppt)
This poster session shared esults from a qualitative study that examined perceived diversity-related, cultural experiences within one institution of higher education and the impact on organization processes. Results indicated a need to develop baseline data for strategic planning in the discussion of issues, policies, and practices associated with the institutions cultural norms.
Deneese L. Jones, Associate Professor, College of Education, Chair, President's Commission on Diversity, and Kimberly Drummond, Staff Associate, President's Commission on Diversity, University of Kentucky

Measurement Issues in Determining Academic Admissions
Steven A. Culpepper, Doctoral Candidate, Statistics and Measurement, Educational Psychology,and Malaika McKee-Culpepper, Doctoral Candidate, Higher Education Policy and Administration, University of Minnesota

Assessing Students' Intercultural Sensitivity Skills from a Developmental Perspective: A Case Study of Two Curricular Approaches to Teaching Cultural Difference
Jon F. Schamber, Professor of Communication, University of the Pacific, and Sandra Mahoney, Assistant Director of Student Academic Support, University of the Pacific

Using a "Diverse Identities" Course to Promote Student Identity Development (pdf)
Whittier College has been offering a unique course called Diverse Identities, to promote identity development. The course discusses theories, research, first person accounts, and films about various ethnic identities, as well as national, religious, social class, geographic, school, occupational, gender, sexual, family, age, health, and political identities. It broadens students' understanding of discrimination and identity issues faced by themselves and others.
Charles T. Hill, Professor of Psychology, Whittier College

8:00 - 9:00 a.m.

Continental Breakfast and Poster Sessions

9:00 - 10:30 a.m.

Keynote Address

Plenary

Compelling Interests That Shape Race and Education in America
Interdisciplinary legal scholar and public intellectual, Patricia Williams is one of the most provocative thinkers of our day. Recipient in 2000 of the MacArthur Fellowship, dubbed a "genius award" in the popular press, Professor Williams caught national attention with her much praised first book, The Alchemy of Race and Rights: A Diary of a Law Professor. She appears regularly on radio and television; and is a contributing editor and columnist for The Nation. Professor William's legal scholarship and analysis of the cultural, racial, and political dynamics of America deepened the conversation on diversity, equity, and democracy.
Patricia J. Williams, Professor of Law, Columbia University Law School

11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Concurrent Sessions

Pathway 1

Campus Climate for LGBT People: A National Perspective (ppt)
In Fall 2002, a report on the climate on college campuses for queer members of the academic community was published. This session reviewed the study's findings as they pertain to sexual/gender identity, class, and race.
Susan Rankin, Senior Diversity Planning Analyst, The Pennsylvania State University

Pathway 1

Confronting Racism and Racial Stereotypes: The Jim Crow Museum
John P. Thorp, Director, Jim Crow Museum, Phillip Middleton, Professor of Languages and Literature, and Susan Booker Morris, Associate Professor of Humanities, Ferris State University

Pathway 3

Race and Equity in American Education (pdf)
In this session, two video documentaries were presented as effective pedagogical instruments to help those who teach and support the goal of racial equity in education and in society. These videos are powerful tools for helping educators and administrators explore issues of race, diversity and excellence in class and on campus.
Rahdi Taylor, Director of Education, California Newsreel

Pathway 4

Building Faculty Capacity for Multicultural Teaching: Three Experiential Approaches (ppt)
In several new faculty development programs, the University of Michigan builds innovative individual and networked institutional capacity and curricula in multicultural teaching and learning (pdf). In this highly interactive session, they shared new methods and initiatives which take many forms across the university, as well as research on their effectiveness. Handouts included a "Crossing the Line" exercise (pdf) and a "Social Identity"profile (pdf).
A.T. Miller, Coordinator of Multicultural Teaching and Learning, Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, and Melissa Peet, Doctoral Candidate, Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education, University of Michigan

Pathway 4

From Inclusion to Empowerment: An Action Agenda for Disability Services (ppt)
This presentation provided a context for the inclusion of people with disabilities as a critical constituent in discussions of diversity. Challenges in sustaining disability services beyond legal compliance to support student learning and faculty development were discussedas well as two resources to assist campuses in meeting the needs of students seeking disability services: The Ticket To Work Program, which focuses on career pathways for students, and the Heath Center, the national clearinghouse for disability services.
Julia Yuen-Heung To Dutka, Associate Provost, Capital University, Lydia S. Block, Block Educational Consulting, Pamela M. Ekpone, Director, HEATH Resource Center, George Washington University-National Clearinghouse on Postsecondary Education For Individuals With Disabilities, and Valerie Briggs, Marketing Supervisor, Social Security Administration, MAXIMUS Ticket To Work Program

Pathway 4

Historically Black Colleges and Universities: A Commitment to Excellence in the 21st Century
Lezli Baskerville, President and CEO, National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education

Pathway 5

Making Excellence Inclusive: Institutional Roles and Responsibilities
Alma R. Clayton-Pedersen, Vice President for Education and Institutional Renewal, AAC&U, Estela Bensimon, Professor and Director of the Center for Urban Education, University of Southern California, and Jeffrey F. Milem, Associate Professor and Director, Higher Education Administration Graduate Program, University of Maryland

Pathway 5

Advancing and Assessing Campus Diversity: The University of Michigan Admissions Policy (ppt)
This session featured recent admissions and programmatic changes at the University of Michigan; best practices and new initiatives designed to advance campus diversity in staff and faculty areas, curriculum, and pedagogy; and data captured over a decade related to how diversity has played a role in the lives of students at the university as well as post-college.
John H. Matlock, Associate Vice Provost and Director, Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives,and Katrina C. Wade-Golden, Research Coordinator, Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives, University of Michigan

12:30 - 2:00 p.m.

Bring Your Own Lunch to National Initiative for Women in Higher Education (NIWHE) Forum

.

NIWHE is a multicultural alliance promoting a women-led agenda for the sustained transformation of higher education.

2:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Plenary Session

Plenary

Closing the Performance Gap, Kindergarten through College (ppt)
Using compelling data, Kati Haycock mapped the profound inequities of our current school systems, offered practices that produce high achieving minority and low-income students, and suggested how higher education might improve the achievement levels of their own students from under-resourced schools.
Kati Haycock, Director, The Education Trust

3:15 - 4:15 p.m.

Concurrent Sessions

Pathway 2

Environmental Justice and University-Community Partnerships
Beverly Wright, Executive Director, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Xavier University of Louisiana

Pathway 3

Challenging the Norms of Whiteness (pdf)
Creating institutional norms that foster inclusive, multicultural environments requires assessment of systems as well as individual behaviors. Participants examined how the intersections among "whiteness," systems of thought, and power contribute to cultural and epistemological bias that results in institutional systems of de facto exclusion. Alec MacLeod, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, California Institute of Integral Studies, Member: European American Collaborative Challenging Whiteness

Pathway 3

Strengthening Professional Networks for Chicana Teachers in Urban Settings
Joyce H. Burstein, Assistant Professor, Elementary Education, and Theresa Montano, Assistant Professor, Chicano/a Studies, California State University, Northridge

Pathway 4

The Ph.D. Project: Diversifying Business Higher Education
Bernard J. Milano, President, KPMG Foundation

Pathway 4

Addressing Institutional Barriers Facing Underserved Students of Color
Ramon L. Rodriguez, Associate Director, BellSouth Foundation, Alma R. Clayton-Pedersen, Vice President for Education and Institutional Renewal, AAC&U, and Timothy D. Brown, Dean, Humanities and Social Sciences, Trident Technical College

Pathway 4

Creating and Nurturing Effective Strategies for Academic Success
JaNae' M. Taylor, Catherine L. Packer, and Joy Harden, Doctoral Students, Counseling Psychology, University of Georgia

Pathway 4

Connecting Academic and Student Affairs to Advance Minority Student Achievement
Kirsten A. Thorne, Director, Academic Community of Excellence, Loyola Marymount University, and Steven E. Neal, Program Coordinator, Academic Community of Excellence, Loyola Marymount University

4:30 - 5:30 p.m.

Concurrent Sessions

Pathway 1

Transitioning Students and Transforming Lives: Practicing Democracy in a Residential Learning Community
Lorrie A. Ranck, Program Coordinator, Martín-Baró Scholars Program, and David Ryan, Instructor, Rhetoric and Composition, University of San Francisco

Pathway 1

Teaching and Learning about Race and Class
Meta Mendel-Reyes, Professor and Director of Service-Learning, Melenia Jackson, Student, Berea College; and Judith A. Faulkner, Community Educator

Pathway 2

Exploring Civic Engagement: Outcomes of an Urban-Rural Student Exchange Project
Sharon L. Shields, Professor, Human & Organizational Development, Vanderbilt University; Elizabeth D. Gilbert, Associate Professor, Community Health Education, University of New Mexico Gallup; and Meaghan E. Mundy, Research Assistant, Human & Organizational Development, Vanderbilt University

Pathway 4

Institutional Change for Diversity and Student Learning
Valerie Whittlesey, Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs, Flora Devine, Interim Vice President for Diversity & Human Resources, Mary Lou Frank, Dean, Undergraduate and University Studies, and Quincy Flowers, Student, Kennesaw State University

Pathway 4

Promoting Faculty and Staff Development for Institutional Transformation
Martha J. LaBare, Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty; Director, Bloomfield College Bildner Campus Diversity Initiative, Bloomfield College; and Tim Haresign, Associate Professor, Biology, The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey

Pathway 4

Opening the Pathways to College for Underrepresented Populations (ppt)
This session focused on two innovative and replicable community-university partnerships designed to prepare young minority students for college: Hispanic Achievers, a collaboration between Belmont University and the YMCA, and 100 Kings, a collaboration with 100 Black Men of Middle Tennessee.
Marcia McDonald, Associate Provost, Belmont University, Rodney Smith, Director, 100 Kings Program, 100 Black Men of Middle Tennessee, Inc., and David Julseth, Chair, Foreign Languages Department, Belmont University

7:30 - 9:00 p.m.

Special Event

A Conversation With Alana: One Boy's Multicultural Rite of Passage
In his play, Cortés dramatizes his story of growing up as the son of a Mexican Catholic immigrant father and an American-born Jewish mother in racially segregated, religiously divided early post-World War II Kansas City, Missouri.
Carlos Cortés, Professor of History, Emeritus, University of California, Riverside

8:00 - 9:00 a.m.

Continental Breakfast and Roundtable Discussions

Partnerships in Diversity Education
Laura A. Crawford, Associate Professor of General Studies, and Brenda L. Hosley, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Berea College

Governing Difference: The Role of Diversity Ecologies (ppt)
Using data from 41 interviews with faculty, staff, and administrators at four public, research-I universities, this roundtable examined the relationship between a university's diversity ecology (the social and political context of universities) and the efforts of diversity advocates at coalition building.
Jose Marichal, Assistant Professor of Sociology, California Lutheran University

Teaching Diversity in the Economics Discipline: A Faculty Member and Student Reflection on an Introductory Level Course
Raymonda L. Burgman, Assistant Professor of Economics and Management, DePauw University; and Aarti Bajaj, Graduate Student, Economics, Vanderbilt University

The Diversity Project: Turning Hate Mail into a Teaching and Learning Experience (pdf)
After racist hate mail was received by a popular professor recently promoted to administrator, students in one class created a unique response. This discussion focused on how to turn an incident that threatens the stability of the campus community into an engaged learning experience for both students and faculty.
Rebecca Daniels, Associate Professor of Speech & Theatre/First Year Program, Randy Olivo, Student, and Lyndsey Rawson, Student, St. Lawrence University

Enhancing the Campus Culture with Conversations: An Exploration of Diversity and Democracy Dialogues
Mary "Missy" Kenny, CSW, Program Advisor/Faculty, Community Service-Learning & ODAA, Stony Brook University

A Paradigm Shift: Can a Model of Inclusive Instruction Promote Inclusive Excellence?
This session focused on a new paradigm that proposes a proactive model of inclusive instruction for educational access for students with learning disabilities. Universal Design for Instruction is an approach to teaching that anticipates diversity and includes nine principles for designing and delivering instruction that is responsive to diverse learners.
Joan M. McGuire, Professor, Educational Psychology, and Sally S. Scott, Associate Professor in Residence, Educational Psychology, University of Connecticut

Bridging a Gap in Student Identity Development Theory: An Empirical Inquiry into the Identity Development of International Students
Eunyoung Kim, Research Assistant/Ph.D. student, & Denise O. Green, Assistant Professor, Educational Organization & Leadership, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Teaching Democracy in the Composition Classroom: A Roundtable Discussion of Achieving Programmatic Change
M. J. Braun, Assistant Professor of Rhetoric, Director of Composition, Carol Hulse, Adjunct Instructor, and Jennifer Walsingham, Adjunct Instructor, University of West Florida

9:00 - 10:00 a.m.

Concurrent Sessions

Pathway 1

Teaching about Islam, Valuing the Islamic Perspective: A Challenge to the Concept of Religious Freedom (pdf)
This presentation explored whether religious freedom can exist where there are competing definitions of what religion is and how it relates to civil society.
Robert F. Shedinger, Assistant Professor of Religion, Luther College

Pathway 2

Integrating Community Engagement with Intercultural Learning
Amy Koritz, Associate Professor, English, Carolyn Barber-Pierre, Assistant Vice President, Student Affairs, and Hamilton Simons-Jones, Director, Community Service Coordination, Tulane University

Pathway 3

The LGBT Community and Institutional Change
Research has shown us that "mattering" makes the difference between passivity and student engagement and activism, but demonstrating to students with marginalized identities that they matter has remained an elusive goal. This session presented the case of a university that has seen substantive changes and a resounding increase in participation and activism of LGBTQA community members in the past two years.
Dorothea V. Brauer, Director, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning & Ally Services, Alin Wakefield, Graduate Student/Former Practicum for LGBTQA Services, and Kim Little, Co-President of Free to Be, Student Club, University of Vermont

Pathway 4

Exploring Strategies for Hiring and Retaining Minority Faculty
Paula M. Krebs, Chair, Department of English, Wheaton College; and Martha J. LaBare, Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty, Bloomfield College

Pathway 4

The Posse Program: A Strategy to Advance Diversity in Higher Education
Andrew Williams, Director of Multicultural Affairs, Carleton College; Dee Gardner, Director of University Partnerships, The POSSE Foundation; and Nataly Barrera, Student, Carleton College

Pathway 4

Assessment of Diversity Initiatives: A Tool for Transformation (ppt)
This session presented best practices in assessment that have been gleaned from the Bildner New Jersey Campus Diversity Initiative (NJCDI), which views diversity as essential to educational excellence and as a resource for change on campus and in the larger society.
Sonia V. Gonsalves, Professor, Psychology, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Daniel Hiroyuki Teraguchi, Program and Research Associate, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Global Initiatives, AAC&U

10:15 - 11:30 a.m.

Concurrent Sessions

Pathway 1

Democracy, Diversity, and Community
Greg L. Smith, Assistant Dean/Director, First-Year Interest Groups, and Andrew Wolpert, Associate Professor, Classics and History, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Pathway 2

Perspectives on Education for Sustainable Development (ppt)
Attendees explored ways to easily infuse the three components of global sustainable development - environment health, community health and economic health - into higher education, including curricula, operations, student life, and community partnerships. Participants received resources to help produce graduates with the skills and academics to effectively engage in building strong communities and economies while reducing human suffering and protecting the environment.
Debra Rowe, Faculty, Psychology, Oakland Community College; Rosalyn McKeown, Director, Center for Sustainable Development, University of Tennessee; and Robert Gough, Former Fellow, Natural Resources Law Center, University of Colorado, Boulder

Pathway 3

Diversity as a Compelling Interest: Developing a Shared Vision for Social Justice
Kelly E. Maxwell, Associate Director, The Program on Intergroup Relations, Monita C. Thompson, Co-Director, The Program on Intergroup Relations, and Greg Merritt, Assistant Director, Residence Education, University of Michigan

Pathway 4

Faith in the Mix: Diversity Issues at Church-related Colleges
Janice Yee, Co-Director, Global and Multicultural Studies, Wartburg College; Eddie Moore, Director, Intercultural Life, Central College; and William E. Green, Assistant Dean and Director of Multicultural Affairs and Community Outreach, St. Olaf College

Pathway 4

Building a Cadre of Faculty "Champions" for Diversity (pdf)
This session focueds on how to identify potential advocates for student and faculty diversity and how to coach them to assume leadership roles. Insights from the presenter's new book, Faculty Diversity: Problems and Solutions, enriched the session.
JoAnn Moody, Diversity Consultant, Director, Northeast Consortium for Faculty Diversity

Pathway 4

Making Excellence Inclusive: A Model for Organizational Change
Damon A. Williams, Assistant Provost for Multicultural and International Affairs, University of Connecticut; and Joseph Berger, Associate Professor and Department Chair, Higher Education, University of Massachusetts

Pathway 5

Learning Communities and Diversity: Research and Practice on Student Success
Emily Decker Lardner and Gillies Malnarich, Co-Directors, Washington Center for Improving Undergraduate Education, The Evergreen State College

11:45 a.m. -
1:15 p.m.

Plenary Luncheon

Democracy and Religious Pluralism
Diana Eck is the author of the pathbreaking book, A New Religious America: How a "Christian Country" Has Become the World's Most Religiously Diverse Nation, which explores the faith traditions of new immigrant cultures that are re-shaping the United States. Dr. Eck argues that America's commitment to the free-exercise of religion has been a recipe for the expansion of religious diversity that in turn raises a range of new questions in schools, colleges, and communities. Drawing on her extensive research on comparative religions, she also examined some of the challenges of religious pluralism in various global contexts.
Diana Eck, Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Member of the Faculty of Divinity, and Acting Director of the Center for the Study of World Religions, Harvard University

1:30 - 2:45 p.m.

Featured Sessions

How the Media Teaches About Diversity
Carlos Cortés, Professor of History, Emeritus, University of California, Riverside

White Students and Diversity Courses: Who Flipped the Script?
Daryl G. Smith, Professor, Educational Studies, Claremont Graduate University

3:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Featured Sessions

From Admissions to Financial Aid to Recruitment: What do the University of Michigan Decisions Tell Us?
Arthur L. Coleman and Scott R. Palmer, Partners, Holland & Knight LLP

Foundation Officers Reflect on Access and Success
Ramon L. Rodriguez, Associate Director, BellSouth Foundation; and Heather Wathington, Senior Research Officer, Lumina Foundation for Education

3:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Concurrent Sessions

Pathway 2

Shared Futures and the End of Neo-Liberal Democracy
Greg Tanaka, Clerk, Center for Democracy and Social Change, Pacific Oaks College

Pathway 3

Creating a Mission-Driven Learning Environment for LGBT Retention and Success
Ronni L. Sanlo, Director, Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Campus Resource Center; Faculty in Residence, University of California, Los Angeles; and Ray Quirolgico, Director, Residence Life, University of San Francisco

Pathway 4

Developing Effective Diversity-Action Committees (pdf)
The two presenters will highlight successful strategies for moving diversity work forward on campus. They will discuss how to form a Diversity Committee, who should serve on the committee, how to integrate national and local figures and issues, and how to gain attendance at events. They will also discuss appropriate follow-up to ensure initiatives are sustained.
Pearl W. Bartelt, Senior Fellow, Education and Quality Initiatives, AAC&U, and Felton Best, Professor, Philosophy, Central Connecticut State University

MEETING LINKS

About the Conference:
  Overview
  Partners
 

Conference Features:
  Program (pdf)
  Schedule at a Glance
  Podcasts
  Participant List
 

Past Meetings:
 2006 Meeting
 2004 Meeting
 2002 Meeting
 

Join the AAC&U Contact List
 

Diversity & Democracy: latest issue