Office of Multicultural Student Affairs at The University of Chicago

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Alumni Newsletter | Fall 2007

In the summer of 2005, the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) joined with the University of Chicago Alumni Association to create a quarterly Alumni Newsletter to update alumni of color on diversity initiatives from OMSA and the University, as well as offer information that will assist alumni in engaging and connecting with the University community.

WHAT'S NEW?

OMSA Name Change

The Office of Minority Student Affairs has changed its name to the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs.

After long deliberation and student input OMSA changed its name. The OMSA Student Advisory Board contributed significant comments on this matter. Participants of a June 2007 OMSA Programming Satisfaction Survey also cast votes on a selection of possible names.

The OMSA Student Advisory Board, survey participants, and the OMSA Staff agreed that "Multicultural" is the preferred wording for the name of the office. "Multicultural" more appropriately reflects the mission and activities of the office. Therefore OMSA has adopted this wording and changed its name to the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs. The change took effect on July 1, 2007. The abbreviation of the office's name continues to be "OMSA".

OMSA/Amandla Relocation... Updates on 5710

A house now being renovated at 5710 South Woodlawn and projected for occupancy in early 2008 will be the new home for the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA), Amandla Student Center, and LGBTQ Resource Center.  The house will be a student-centered space that will enhance the overall campus experience for students of color and LGBTQ students and will serve as a vibrant hub for students to congregate together, join in programming and community-building, and work closely with staff from the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and the LGBTQ Resource Center, who will be housed in the building as well.

The space includes a large lounge for events, programs, and socializing, a small study lounge, offices for related student organizations and student programming, meeting and storage spaces, a kitchenette, resource library and common computer resources, and office space for OMSA and the LGBTQ Resource Center on the second and third floors.

If you would like to learn more on this project and how you can be helpful in the final phase of development please contact Ana Vazquez, Deputy Dean/Director of OMSA at avazquez@uchicago.edu, 773-702-2724.  We look to forward to welcoming our alums back to campus in our new home at 5710 S. Woodlawn during the 07-08 academic school year!

Chicago Multicultural Connection (CMC)

OMSA's Mentoring Program is off to a Great Start!

The Chicago Multicultural Connection (CMC), a career-focused mentoring program, has matched over 80 passionate and motivated UC alum, graduate students, faculty and staff to serve as career mentors for the 2007-2008 school year!  CMC matches undergraduate students of color with alumni, faculty, staff or graduate students who share similar career interests and goals. Along with one-on-one mentorship, the program provides career and academic workshops as well as social and cultural events throughout the year. 

In the 2007 autumn quarter, CMC sponsored a Kick-Off Reception and hosted dinner at Café Iberico in downtown Chicago.  In addition, the program staff coordinated a workshop on applying to graduate school.  CMC events for winter quarter will include ice-skating in Millennium Park, dinner in the city and a graduate and professional school preparation workshop.

For more information or to sign up as a mentor, please contact Robin Graham via email at rgraham1@uchicago.edu or visit http://omsa.uchicago.edu/mentorship.

Emergency & Academic Grants

The Office of Multicultural Student Affairs has created several new grant opportunities for students of color at the University.  Students may now receive financial grants for assistance with study abroad, academic support supplies, conference attendance, academic research funding and unexpected emergencies. Since the beginning of the 2007-2008 academic year 22 students have been awarded grants totaling over $13,000. These opportunities were made possible through the generous gifts of alums and also an untapped endowment at the university.  For more information on ways for you to be involved with OMSA and/or support students, please contact Ana Vazquez at avazquez@uchicago.edu or by phone at (773) 834-4672.

New University Diversity Statement

President Robert Zimmer and Deputy Provost for Research and Minority Issues Kenneth Warren have released a new Diversity Statement for the University of Chicago. A Diversity Statement was last released in 2004 by Don Randel, President of the University at the time, and Richard Saller, Provost of the University at the time. The 2007 Diversity Statement is the latest product of the University's longstanding effort to enhance and renew its educational mission. It is available online here.

FALL QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS:

OMSA Events

  • O-Week and GSO

This year's O-Week and Graduate Student Orientations were more successful than ever before. OMSA welcomed all incoming students of color to receptions, brunches, lunches, dinners, and workshops. New students met staff, faculty, returning students, and each other.

Especially notable were the O-Week Reception for First-Years and Families, which was held in Harper Quad. Over seventy guests attended. They met Kim Goff-Crews, the new Vice-President and Dean of Students in the University. They also met the staff of OMSA, College Advisors, and staff representatives from the College Programming Office.

This year's O-Week First-Year Students of Color Workshop was also a success. Forty first-years attended this event, which featured advice from current students. First-years said they appreciated the honesty and sincerity of the panel members, and that the panel helped them feel more comfortable on campus.

Our Graduate Student Orientation Panel and Lunch as well as our Graduate Student Orientation Dinner were also great successes. Together, the two events drew almost one hundred new students. Attendees appreciated the panelists' advice on staying balanced and handling cold weather, and they also appreciated the opportunity to meet students of color from other graduate programs.

The Office of Multicultural Student Affairs, Career Advising & Planning Services (CAPS) and the University Office of Alumni Relations along with several other university and student organizations sponsored the 4th annual Diversity in the Workplace conference on Wednesday, November 7th, 2007.  This multicultural career exploration and networking event was designed to provide undergraduate students with the opportunity to speak with UC alumni in an array of fields about the opportunities and challenges they have faced as professionals of color.

Diversity in the Workplace was a great success this year with over 90 alumni and students of color attending.  Several alumni reported that they not only enjoyed the interaction with current students, but also welcomed the opportunity to network and reconnect with other alumni of color. The evening's events featured a panel discussion, a dinner and a dessert reception and included alumni in the fields of academia, law, business, medicine, government and public service. 

If you would more information about this event or to find out how to participate next year, please contact Robin Graham via email at rgraham1@uchicago.edu or by phone at (773) 834-6826.

OMSA kicked off its 2nd Annual Internship Fair in November. The internship fair featured organizations in the fields of business, public service, education and more.  Each organization was specifically seeking to increase diverse student applications.  Over 75 students attended the event and we look forward to continuing to grow the event next year.

For more information or to register your organization for next year's fair, please contact Robin Graham via email at rgraham1@uchicago.edu or by phone at (773) 834-6826.

OMSA hosted two exciting Graduate Student Brown Bags in Autumn 2007. Graduate Student Brown Bags are a wonderful opportunity for graduate students of color to present their research interests and papers for feedback. Both graduate and undergraduate students are welcome to attend, and we strongly encourage the attendance of faculty, especially faculty advisors. Topics do not need to be fully developed. The purpose of the Brown Bag is to create a community which supports research by students of color, and we recognize that this is especially important when ideas are still under formulation.

In October Toussaint Losier, Ph.D. student in History, presented "We Are One People: The 1970 New York City Jail Rebellions and the Practice of Solidarity." In this conference paper Toussaint explored how New York City jail inmates understood their own political activity in an era of prison activism. In November Ernesto Garcia-Orduña, Ph.D. student in Comparative Human Development, presented "The Three Faces of Honor." In this paper Ernesto examined the idea of honor and the development of honor in individuals. The Amandla Student Resource Center was packed for both Brown Bags. We are very excited about the strong turnout for our Brown Bags.

Once again this year OMSA hosted a session for high school seniors of color who are considering applying to the University. Held in Ida Noyes Hall, our session introduced OMSA to the seniors and gave them the opportunity to ask questions of the OMSA staff and also of the current students.

We were able to give much exciting news to these prospective students, including information on our upcoming move to 5710 South Woodlawn, the Chicago Multicultural Connection mentorship, funding opportunities, and our numerous programs designed to support their achievement at the University. The seniors were treated to a presentation featuring photos from recent OMSA events and important facts about OMSA. Many students stayed after the session to speak further with the OMSA staff and with our student representative. We hope that we will see many of them at the University next fall.

WHAT'S AHEAD FOR 2008:

The University of Chicago's 22nd annual celebration of the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. will take place from January 19th through January 25th . The planning committee has put together a week of exciting events which include community service, faculty panels, student panels, film screenings, multicultural performances, and the annual memorial service.

This year's keynote speaker will be Loretta J. Ross, founder and the National Coordinator of the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective, will reflect on the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. For more information on Loretta J. Ross, please visit www.speakoutnow.org. 

In addition, the Organization of Black Students' annual Kent Lecture will feature Angela Davis.  For additional information on the week's festivities, visit http://mlk.uchicago.edu.

The OMSA Alumni Newsletter is a joint project of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs and the University of Chicago Alumni Association. Please send your comments and suggestions to omsa@uchicago.edu.