Volume 5, Issue 5: October 21, 2021
R.I.S.E.* Up Newsletter
*Reinforcing Inclusion through Skill-building and Education
Photo of Rohit Bhargava with quote - Every culture’s history is essential. Everyone deserves to have their lives elevated through the beauty of truthful representation.
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Spooky season is here! And with it comes the problem that seems to pop up every Halloween: costumes that insult, offend, or appropriate entire identity groups, nationalities, or cultures.

While many people enjoy the fun of "trying on" a different character when they don a Halloween costume, when these costumes utilize caricatures and stereotypes, the "fun" can be experienced by others as insensitive, demeaning and offensive.

Is your Halloween costume a problem? Consider the following:
  • Are you using a culture or religion as your costume?
  • Does your costume incorporate any images that might be considered as stereotypes or caricatures applying to an entire group of people?
  • Does your costume include artifacts or symbols that have particular importance to another person's religion or culture?
  • Does your costume involve changing your skin tone with makeup to suggest a particular racial identity?
  • Have you already wondered to yourself -- or asked someone else -- if your costume might be offensive?

If the answer to any of these is "yes," it might be time to look for a different costume. The good news is, there are plenty of other options. Use your imagination! Whatever you do, keep it creative, and keep it respectful. Happy Halloween!
Headshot of Tiffany Galvin Green
Sincerely,

Tiffany Galvin Green, Ph.D.,
Vice President for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion



Looking for more resources? Try these:
Division Announcements
A Fond (and Sad) Farewell ...
headshot - Tiffany Galvin Green
It is with regret that we share the news that Dr. Tiffany Galvin Green, our Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, will be leaving John Carroll early in November to accept a new position.

All members of the JCU community are invited to join us for a farewell reception to wish her well. Please feel free to drop in to the University Lounge (AD 144) from 3:30-5:00 pm on Thursday, November 4 to say goodbye and good luck!

DE-MIL-I-TA-RISE by Dissenters Movement
Oct. 26-29, 12:30-2:00 pm | Black Cultural Center
Promotional Image for art exhibition
Join Black Students in Action and the Center for Student Diversity & Inclusion for the art exhibit DE-MIL-I-TA-RISE by Dissenters and Justseeds.

The exhibit will be displayed in the newly dedicated Black Cultural Center (Room 40 in the Lombardo Student Center), which will open from 12:30 pm to 2:00 pm each day; guests are welcome to drop in during those hours. Snacks and an interpretive brochure about the artwork will be available for attendees.

Dissenters is a national movement organization leading a new generation to reclaim resources from the war industry, reinvest in life-giving institutions, and repair collaborative relationships with the earth and people around the world. The following is how they describe their vision for this exhibit:  

"BUT THE TIDES ARE TURNING.
WE CHOOSE TO BE THE GENERATION THAT DISSENTS."
We are the most globally interconnected generation in history, and we value life everywhere. We will not be divided. We know that real safety comes from caring for each other and our environment. We are the many. We are young, we are energized, and we are visionaries. We are Muslim, immigrant, Black, indigenous, undocumented, ex-military, trans, and queer. We are a generation of hope, healers, and creatives.
Evaluating Job Offers and Negotiating Your First Salary
Wednesday, October 27, 2:00 pm | Mastranoni Student Success Commons, Grasselli Library
Promotional image for Evaluating Job Offers and Negotiating Your First Salary
The Wayfinders Program, CSDI and Career Services are partnering to present this workshop to help students negotiate job offers. In this workshop, students will learn how to understand a benefits packages, know your value on the job market, learn research tactics, and accept the offer that is best for you. Open to all students!
LASA celebrates Día de los Muertos
Wednesday, October 27, 5:00 pm | Keller Commons
promotional image for LASA Dia de Los Muertos program
Join the Latin American Student Association for a night of food, activities and an Ofrenda service.

We will be having a food truck* from La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant of Highland Heights, along with dancing, face painting, activities and most importantly a service featuring an Ofrenda.

The Ofrenda service will be held towards the end of the event where we will be honoring our loved ones who have passed on to the afterlife. We encourage students to please bring a photo or item that is in remembrance of their loved ones, as well as a note reading their name. Please join us for this fun and sacred holiday that us at LASA are proud to host. 

*La Fiesta food truck will be first come first serve, so please be of the first 100 guests to arrive!
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Can't make it to the in-person Ofrenda service at JCU? You can also add your memories and photo of a loved one to the Virtual Día de Muertos Altar online at the LA Times.
Save the Date!
"Un-Silencing the Black Catholic Past: The Political Struggles of Black Catholic Nuns in the United States"
Tuesday, November 16, 2021 | 6:30 pm
in-person: Rodman A / livestreamed via Zoom
photo of Shannen Dee Williams speaking at a podium
As part of our campus celebration of Black Catholic History Month, we are pleased to welcome Dr. Shannen Dee Williams, Associate Professor of History at the University of Dayton, to the JCU campus to offer a guest lecture on Tuesday, November 16.

Dr. Williams is a historian of the African American experience with research and teaching specializations in women’s, religious and Black freedom movement history. In this talk, she will share insights from her forthcoming book, Subversive Habits: Black Catholic Nuns in the Long African American Freedom Struggle (Duke University Press, April 2022).
black and white photo of a group of nuns in long habits and bonnets marching in a Civil Rights protest holding signs reading SNCC - One Man One Vote and We March for Freedom and Equality for All Men
Specifically, Williams will consider how the master narratives of women’s religious life and Catholic participation in the Black freedom struggle fundamentally change when the lives and experiences of African American nuns are taken seriously.

The event will feature door prizes for in-person attendees, including pre-purchased orders for copies of Subversive Habits. A dessert reception will follow the event.

This event is free and open to the public. Please join us!
collage of photos and flyers from past Mandel grant funded projects
Call for Proposals: Mandel Grants

The Mandel Grant Review Committee is now inviting proposals for funds to support creative programs and ideas designed to build a campus culture of inclusion, dialogue and respect. Proposals are considered on a rolling deadline until funds are exhausted.

Small grants (up to $2,000) from the Mandel fund may be requested by students, staff or faculty. All requestors must be able to demonstrate that their proposed program fits into the University Strategic Plan for Inclusive Excellence.

Whether your idea considers speakers, trainings, panels, intercultural experiences, the visual or performing arts, a service project, a class program, or other programs or events that meet the goals of the Mandel Grant Fund for Conversation and Inclusion, we want to hear from you!
Banner reads Congratulations to our new DEI Champion Badge Recipients with photos of Amber Andrews and Edward Peck
We are pleased to welcome two more Champions to the rolls of our DEI Champions badge earners for 2021-22!

The following two staff members have earned BLUE badges this week:
  • Amber Andrews, Donor Stewardship and Events Manager in the Advancement Division
  • Edward J. Peck, Vice President for University Mission & Identity

The DEI Champions program recognizes members of our faculty and staff for their contributions to the university's diversity, equity and inclusion goals and initiatives.

*Note to current participants in the Champions program: check your points to earn your badges! Several people have participated in recent DEI events but have not yet added their points for those events to their total in Canvas. Give yourself credit for the many great things you are doing!
Film screening and director talk-back: There is a Field
October 27, 7:00 pm | virtual via Zoom
promo image for There is a Field - row of empty chairs in an empty space and words reading RESISTING OPPRESSION. BUILDING SOLIDARITY.
Set in Palestine and performed by BIPOC artists and activists in the US, the one-hour film There is a Field explores the death of a young Palestinian activist, building solidarity across intersectional struggles for liberation and justice.

There will be conversation afterward with the director and participants in the film.

Sponsored by the Peace, Justice, and Human Rights program and the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion.

All are welcome! Join us on Zoom:
Zoom Meeting ID: 960 9896 9184 (passcode: pjhr)
Live Poetry Reading by Tomás Q. Morín
November 4, 7:00 pm | Rodman A
Tomás Q. Morín is the award-winning author of the memoir Let Me Count the Ways, as well as the poetry collections Machete, Patient Zero, and A Larger Country. He is translator of The Heights of Macchu Picchu by Pablo Neruda. He teaches at Rice University and Vermont College of Fine Arts.

This event is sponsored by the Program in Peace, Justice and Human Rights; the Center for Student Diversity & Inclusion, and the English Department. All are welcome. CSDI will be hosting a giveaway of five copies of Tomas's recent book, Machete! 
Domestic Violence Awareness Month Events
close up photo of small purple decorative lights
The Office of Student Wellness, Title IX Office, and other departments across campus are collaborating to present programming throughout October to raise awareness of domestic violence and support those currently struggling with it.

  • HRT (Healthy Relationship Topics) Certification Programs: #Relationshipgoals, 10/27 at 7pm - RSVP here
  • Women’s Self Defense Classes, Sponsored by Student Government. 10/28 at 6 pm (Space is limited - Register here)
  • Clothesline Project, Presented by Kappa Delta, 11/5 from 3:00-5:00 pm

In addition to programming, offices across campus are displaying purple lights this month as a sign of solidarity with survivors of domestic violence. Contact wellness@jcu.edu with questions or to request lights for your own work space!
R.I.S.E. Higher: Featured Article of the Week
This Is How Everyday Sexism
Could Stop You From Getting That Promotion
Jessica Nordell, The New York Times, October 14, 2021

When the computer scientist and mathematician Lenore Blum announced her resignation from Carnegie Mellon University in 2018, the community was jolted. A distinguished professor, she'd helped found the Association for Women in Mathematics, and made seminal contributions to the field. But she said she found herself steadily marginalized from a center she’d help create — blocked from important decisions, dismissed and ignored. She explained at the time: "Subtle biases and micro-aggressions pile up, few of which on their own rise to the level of 'let’s take action,' but are insidious nonetheless."

It’s an experience many women can relate to. But how much does everyday sexism at work matter?
Announcements from our network...
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October Connections Magazine:
LGBTQ+ Students Find Support on Jesuit Campuses
Logo of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities
This month's Connections magazine (the monthly publication of the Association of Jesuit Colleges & Universities) marks LGBT History Month by featuring articles about several Jesuit colleges and universities where faculty and staff are leading the way toward creating increasingly welcome campuses for students (and fellow faculty and staff) who identify as members of the LGBT community. Click the link to read these examples of how our schools are serving members of the LGBT community, while living out the Universal Apostolic Preferences of the Society of Jesus, including "Walking with the Excluded" and "Journeying with Youth."
ReelAbilities Cleveland Last Call Virtual Film Series:
Zombies, Thrillers And A Little Will Ferrell
October 15-30, 2021
The ReelAbilities Film Festival – Cleveland (RAFF-CLE), presents the final two weeks of its *FREE* 2021 virtual film festival this October 15-30.

Founded in New York in 2007, the ReelAbilities Film Festival presents award-winning films by and about people with disabilities. Post-screening discussions and other engaging programs bring together the community to explore, discuss, embrace, and celebrate the diversity of our shared human experience. Cleveland became a host city in 2017 with a goal to create more conversations around disability.
Cleveland Museum of Natural History Centennial Speaker Series
Bellen's More Than Peach:
Revolutionizing Classrooms—Starting with Crayons
November 5, 7:00 pm | in-person and live streamed
Promo image for Centennial Speaker Series with photo of Bellen Woodard
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History welcomes "The World’s 1st Crayon Activist," Bellen Woodard. Ten-year-old Bellen is a young entrepreneur dedicated to affirming empathy and teaching tolerance in schools through multicultural crayons and other inclusive products. She is the founder of Bellen’s More Than Peach™ Project, which aims to get multicultural crayons into the hands of every student in every classroom so that no kid feels “disincluded," and to grow the classroom experience for all students.
Author Min Jin Lee comes to "Authors Center Stage"
Tuesday, Nov. 9, 7:30 pm | Case Western Reserve University
Headshot of Min Jin Lee alongside the cover of her book Pachinko
Min Jin Lee is next up in the Cuyahoga County Public Library "Writers Center Stage" series! The award-winning author will visit the Maltz Performing Arts Center on the campus of Case Western Reserve University on Tuesday, November 9 at 7:30 p.m. 

Lee's novel, Pachinko, was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction and was named by The New York Times as one of the 10 best books of 2017. Former President Barack Obama also chose Pachinko for his reading list, calling it "a powerful story about resilience and compassion." 

In-person event tickets $30; Virtual (live streaming) tickets $15.
DEI in the Headlines: Quick Takes
Logo of Xavier U of Louisiana
Catholic HBCU Celebrates its First LGBTQ Pride Week

This week marks the first-ever Pride Week at Xavier University of Louisiana, the country's only historically Black Catholic institution. The school is hosting several events throughout the week to celebrate the history and societal contributions of LGBTQ community members. One such event included a "Gayla" held Tuesday night that focused on the theme "unveiling the mask." Students at the gala were awarded scholarships to recognize their efforts in advocating for human rights.
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Poll finds that U.S. Women are largely dissatisfied with how they are treated in society -- but most men report that things are fine for women.
 
A recent Gallup poll found that a majority of women in the U.S. (66%) are dissatisfied with the treatment of their gender in society, while only 41% of men agreed with the women that a problem existed. The latest reading of women's satisfaction with their own treatment is the lowest on record, while men's satisfaction with the treatment of women has remained flat since 2018. The 33% of women who currently think their gender has equal job opportunities as men is the lowest in two decades, while 61% of men believe things are fine for women at work. The report also shows that these perceptions vary according to one's racial identity. White adults tend to be more satisfied with women's treatment than their Black and Hispanic counterparts are. White adults are also more likely than Black adults to think equal job opportunities exist for men and women.
Black and white photo of notices posted to a board with large headline reading INSTRUCTIONS TO ALL PERSONS OF JAPANESE ANCESTRY
USC to Apologize to Japanese American Students
 
The University of Southern California will apologize for its treatment of Japanese American students whose educations were disrupted during World War II, the Los Angeles Times reported this week. Unlike many other West Coast institutions, USC refused to release transcripts of Japanese American students so they could study elsewhere after a 1942 presidential executive order forced the removal of all people of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast. Family members said USC refused to honor previously completed coursework of Japanese American students who attempted to disenroll after the war. Now, 15 years after Japanese American alumni first demanded the university make amends, USC president Carol Folt plans to apologize to the Japanese American former students and award them honorary degrees posthumously.
Other articles we're reading this week ...