As we enter into the spring and summer months, the School of Social Work's DEI Office would like to recognize and hold space for the resilient social workers, students, faculty, alumni, and staff who have come together to stay connected and actively engage in their education and society during a year of unprecedented crisis. While there is still much more we hope to accomplish, we would like to recognize the work and commitment of students, student organizations, staff, and faculty within the School of Social Work who continue to work for a more equitable world. May is Mental Health Awareness Month. As a profession, we must continue to prioritize and support the health and well-being of individuals and communities in caring for themselves in addition, we as social workers must also care for ourselves. This year has been a lot. Now more than ever, we must emphasize the importance of healing, hope, and community.
-SSW DEI Office
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Student Spotlight: LeDeanea Williams |
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"The contexts of advocacy and social justice carry diverse levels of intensities in different cultural settings. If positioned to engage, advocate, and execute the work to promote community change, it must unambiguously begin with honoring and uplifting the voices your work has intended to relevantly represent."
- LeDeanea Williams
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LeDeanea Williams (She/Her/Hers) is a 2021 MSW Advanced Standing Global Pathways Student and a Global Activities Scholar. LeDeanea is not only a student, but also simultaneously an activist, listener, lifelong learner, and artist who cares deeply about her community. LeDeanea hopes to continue to enhance her skills to activate and empower community change while advocating for immigrant equity and inclusion, on both a local and global platform.
Thank you LeDeanea for all you do. Please join us in celebrating LeDeanea's artwork and poetry in this month's healing, hope and community newsletter.
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Theme: COPING
Title: Between the lines
In these moments, what lies ahead?
Though I trod through the valley of uncertainty,
what I see, is still not reality
As the page turns,
The pages blur
Judge not the remainder of its blank appearance,
Overstimulated thoughts,
Take full residence
In even the dilapidated walls of my mind,
I am still coping,
Between the lines.
-LeDeanea Williams
From SW 750: Photovoice “Pandemically Me” series (Winter 2021)
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Theme: MENTAL HEALTH
Title: Just Get There
Assignments due,
Deliverables expected,
Internship projects,
Group presentations,
Deadlines approaching,
Extension requests,
Late submissions,
Peer-led class facilitations,
Excessive breakout rooms,
Professors lacking skillsets to profess,
Academic titles, without answers,
Turn on your camera,
Unmute yourself,
Can you elaborate?
Critical questions,
Academic deliberations,
Will this even be useful in the field?
Burnt out,
Tapped out,
All out….
of spoons.
As I close my eyes,
breathe, be present,
center, self-care,
If only I….
Just….
Get……
there.
-LeDeanea Williams
From SW 750: Photovoice “Pandemically Me” series (Winter 2021)
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month: Take Time for Yourself |
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Meditate:
Take a moment to create some space to breathe and invite a sense of calm into your day. This is an online guided mindfulness meditation drop-in session hosted by the UMich North Campus. No experience necessary. Free and open to all. Weekly at 10am on Wednesdays.
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Explore the University of Michigan Museum of Art and see the
Pan-African Pulp: A Commission by Meleko Mokgosi Art Exhibit.
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Listen:
Gabriel Tanglao and Estella Owoimaha-Church describe themselves as “dope educators wayfinding the past, present, and future,” their podcast centers around how AA&PI communities can organize, educate, and support one another as they learn from AA&PI cultures and work through current issues.
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Black Stone Bookstore & Cultural Center is an independent African-American bookstore located in the heart of downtown Ypsilanti, Michigan. Not in Ypsilanti? You can also shop online!
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Indulge:
24TH CC is a black-owned family-run business that’s dedicated to providing exceptional handcrafted gourmet desserts to the local Ypsilanti Area!
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Watch:
In honor of Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the Ann Arbor chapter of Citizens' Climate Lobby (CCL), in partnership with the CCL Asian Pacific Action Team, are hosting a virtual screening of the award-winning films, Anote’s Ark and Love Note to an Island. You can view the films in the comfort of your home, then participate in an online panel discussion with filmmaker, Lulu DeBoer, and returned Peace Corps volunteers who served in Kiribati, Brady Fergusson and Dr. Michael Roman.
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Seek Additional Help:
Just like you, the University of Michigan Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS) is reaching out (virtually, of course! #PhysicalDistancing) and sharing ways to help you take care of yourselves, no matter if you are in Ann Arbor, in Michigan, in the US, or across the globe.
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May is Asian Pacific American History Month |
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The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and are instrumental in its future success. |
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Join the Detroit Institute of Arts for an afternoon celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month through a blend of traditional and contemporary performances. A collaboration of the diverse community cultural groups found across Southeast Michigan, the performances showcase the arts of several Asian cultures and promise an unforgettable experience. |
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The Asian Pacific American Heritage Foundation works with the Asian Art Museum, the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) and the San Francisco Public Library to compile an online Celebration Guide for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with a list of events taking place in May. There is a wide range of activities and programs to celebrate APA Heritage Month. Please explore and enjoy.
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Additional Virtual Events |
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Racism is a Public Health Crisis
May 14th, 2021 from 12:00 to 1:00 PM
Leading Equity And Diversity (LEAD), is a series of conversations where attendees have the opportunity to hear from a diverse group of guests who lead and/or support DEI and social justice initiatives. COVID-19 and its disproportionate impact on communities of color have unearthed the deep roots of inequity that exist in the structures of our society, including our health system. This LEAD conversation will address how racism is a public health crisis.
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Centennial Lecture Series: Sharon Parrott - Pandemic, Relief, and Building toward an Equitable Future
May 19, 2021 from 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM
The health and economic crisis shined a light on and exacerbated longstanding problems that were in plain sight for those willing to see them long before COVID-19. The crisis made clear the weaknesses in our economic and health security programs that are supposed to protect people when hard times hit while also showing in the starkest terms the stark inequities across lines of race, ethnicity, gender, and immigration that long pre-dated the pandemic.
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DEI Office Memories of Colleen Karim |
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As we continue to mourn the tragic loss of Colleen Karim, the SSW Online Program Student Services Officer, the DEI Office also reflects on the immense impact she had on the School of Social Work and beyond.
Colleen served as the first MSW student intern in the DEI Office where she created many programs and projects during her time. However, her impact went far beyond the work, and her presence was felt in the relationships that she cultivated with students and colleagues. Her warmth, vibrancy and dedication made our School community a better place. Below, former DEI student staff share their reflections on their connection with Colleen.
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"Colleen was an incredibly kind, bright, loving, fun, generous soul. You could feel how she loved people and life so much, and she spread her light everywhere. Favorite memories I have with Colleen include hanging out in and around the DEI offices, having a mixture of deep conversations and fun. I remember she got me into a self care subscription box, and we'd geek out together about the treasurers inside. This was Colleen to a T, finding and cultivating joy around her. She was lovingly intentional and made every effort to see, celebrate, and care for other people. I can vividly picture how it felt to be around her, all warmth and welcome, and her deep focus in spaces where she was supporting others or responding in crisis. I really miss her."
-Sarah Gettel, DEI Program Assistant 2018
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"I shared various spaces with Colleen - the DEI office, Common Roots and the SEED committee and every time I would go into these spaces I was greeted with her smile and warm laugh. There were many times when I felt like I was running on fumes, but Colleen had the ability to relight the flame and my purpose of being the first in my family to get a Masters.
Colleen's legacy and spirit will forever be imprinted at UMICH.
My connection with Colleen was very much needed and pure."
-Cuauhtemoc Salinas Martell,
DEI Program Assistant 2019
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"Trying to sum up Colleen’s impact on my life seems impossible! During my time as an MSW student and a student worker in the DEI office, Colleen offered such kindness and guidance. Colleen held a lot of patience and space for all students within U-M’s School of Social Work. However, her impact was felt strongly with students of color! Colleen was extremely instrumental in assisting with the Common Roots group, who collectively created unique spaces for students of color at U-M. Without Colleen’s influence, joy, creative ideas, and wit the programs would not have been the same! Colleen and I shared so many moments, I will cherish them forever! When I found out I was expecting a little one, Colleen and Lauren Davis threw me the most wonderful baby shower. I am still overwhelmed with the love they shared for me and my son. Colleen’s spirit will be missed and I am deeply saddened by this incredible loss."
-Jacqueline Ramsey, DEI GSSA 2019
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The DEI Office would like to extend the opportunity for you to share any ideas in regards to diversity, equity, and inclusion within our program. Express any questions, concerns, collaborations, or share resources. |
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University of Michigan
School of Social Work
Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
ssw-dei-office@umich.edu
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