Office of Multicultural Student Affairs at The University of Chicago

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Alumni Newsletter | Winter 2008

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?

5710 S. Woodlawn Grand Opening!

Over 200 people attended the grand opening of 5710 S. Woodlawn on Tuesday, February 26, 2008. Students, faculty, administrators, staff and community members gathered at to celebrate the new home of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs and the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Programming Office.

The celebration kicked off with the rhythm of African, Caribbean and East Indian drummers from Funkadesi, followed by remarks by President Robert Zimmer and Kenneth Warren, Deputy Provost for Research and Minority Issues, a toast by Kimberly Goff-Crews, Vice President and Dean of Students in the University. Following the remarks, President Zimmer led students in a ribbon cutting ceremony.

The celebration continued throughout the day with a variety of programming and events that highlighted both the Students of Color and the LGBTQ communities. Some of the programs included "What is Queer?" a panel hosted by Queers and Associates, "Karaoke Night" hosted by PanAsia and "Mocha Amour: Open Mic Night" hosted by the Organization of Black Students.

As part of the celebration, all visitors received a 5710 travel mugs and opportunities to win various giveaway prizes including Chicago Cubs tickets, gift certificates to local bookstores and an iPod shuffle.

LGBTQ Programming Office relocates to 5710 S. Woodlawn

The LGBTQ Programming Office is delighted to have moved into their new office in the bright and beautiful 5710 S.Woodlawn. The office is staffed by LGBTQ programming intern and fourth-year College student, Sarah Bouchat and by Kathy Forde, Senior Adviser in the College and Director of the LGBTQ Mentoring Program. The LGBTQ Programming Office hosts a variety of events including weekly tea times, quarterly grad student Pub Nights, and cosponsors the Students of Color/LGBTQ Allies Movie nights. In addition, they sponsor the Open Source discussion groups for gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, trans individuals, and queer students of color. These groups meet weekly, and provide a confidential space for students to get to know each other and discuss topics of interest to them: social, political, academic, or otherwise.

Save the Date for the annual Queer BBQ on Thursday, June 5th at 5710 S. Woodlawn from 4:00 to 6:00pm.  The event draws a large number of LGBTQ students, staff, faculty, and friends and features great food and age-appropriate beverages. All are welcome to attend. For more info about the BBQ or any of the other events described above, please see http://lgbtq.uchicago.edu/ or contact Kathy Forde at kaf1@uchicago.edu.

University of Chicago Launches Bias Response Team - Summer 2008

The Vice President/Dean of Students (VPDOS) and Deputy Provost for Research and Minority Issues appointed the inaugural Bias Response Team members on March 19, 2008. The Bias Response Team System will inform students how to seek assistance and support for bias-related incidents that occur on campus.  In addition, this system will communicate to the campus community the values of the institution and what is considered appropriate behavior.  As well, the Bias Response Team system will assist the VPDOS area in documenting and reporting incidents that have occurred on campus.  For more information visit the http://civility.uchicago.edu/ website or contact Ana Vazquez, avazquez@uchicago.edu Deputy Dean/Director-Office of Multicultural Student Affairs.

New Deputy Provost for Graduate Education

We are excited to report that Cathy Cohen, the David and Mary Winton Green Professor in Political Science and the College, has been appointed as Deputy Provost for Graduate Education. Dr. Cohen is the author of the book The Boundaries of Blackness: AIDS and the Breakdown of Black Politics, as well as principal investigator on the Black Youth Project. Read more at the University of Chicago Chronicle.

WINTER QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

University of Chicago's annual MLK Week 2008 was a great hit!  This year the MLK committee worked very hard to ensure we had programs that represented as many communities as possible.  Our keynote speaker for our annual MLK Service was Loretta Ross, a passionate advocate for human rights and specifically reproductive rights for women of color.  In addition, the Organization of Black Students invited Dr. Angela Davis as part of their annual Kent Lecture to speak about how change takes place in contemporary society.  Alongside these two phenomenal speakers, MLK Week 2008 also featured the Lost Boys of Sudan who candidly shared their stories as Sudanese refugees to a packed house at SSA.  New this year was a documentary showing at Hyde Park Arts Center that brought several community members in collaboration with the U of C community to honor the legacies of Dr. Martin Luther Kind Jr.  Overall, the MLK Week 2008 was a wonderful week to honor the teaching of Dr. King and continue his work. 

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 winter quarter, CMC sponsored a great networking dinner catered by Daley's Restaurant here on the Southside. In addition, the program staff coordinated a workshop on completing a BA thesis.  CMC events for spring quarter will include a fabulous night-bicycle tour through downtown Chicago, a graduate and professional school workshop on navigating the 1st year of graduate school and our annual year-end BBQ. We welcome all alumni to join our program!

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/.

OMSA's Winter Quarter Program Highlights

During the winter quarter OMSA hosted several programs.  Among them were our annual Faculty/Student Dialogues that featured the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture's Dr. Theresa Mah who shared her journey as a woman of color in academia.  OMSA also had its quarterly Life Series that discussed what it means to be a student of mixed-heritage identity as well as our Conversations on Race and Ethnicity (CORE) that watched and discussed the documentary "Skin Deep;" both programs were facilitated by the Student Counseling Resource Services' Dr. Josh Singh.  In February, as part of our celebration of Black History Month, we hosted a showing of "NO! The Rape Documentary" that discussed sexual violence in the African American community which led to a lively discussion of how to work to abolish violence in our communities. 

OMSA was excited to host our Graduate Student Mixer, held at the Harris School of Public Policy. We thank the Harris School and the graduate student organization Minorities in Public Policy (MIPPs) for all their work. Over 70 graduate students of color were in attendance. Students from divisions such as the Law School, School of Social Services Administration, Biological Sciences Division, Social Sciences Division, Pritzker School of Medicine, Graduate School of Business, and Harris School socialized, networked, and enjoyed catering from Heaven on Seven.

OMSA also hosted a Graduate Student Brown Bag featuring Erick Guerrero, Ph.D. student in the School of Social Services Administration. Graduate 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. Erick presented "Exploring the Adoption of a Service Logic: The Case of Organizational Cultural Competence." Comprising the early draft of his dissertation, Erick's presentation explored the effect of power and organizational dynamics on cultural responsiveness. Erick also presented empirical results from his study of substance abuse treatment managers in the U.S.

WHAT'S AHEAD FOR SPRING 2008

Each Spring, the Office of College Admissions invites admitted students to stay on-campus overnight and learn about the University. As in years past, OMSA will take an active role in greeting prospective students of color. This year we are proud to be able to welcome them to our gorgeous new building, 5710 South Woodlawn. We will connect them with current students of color, encourage honest dialogue, and support them in obtaining all the information they need to make their college decision.

SAVE THE DATE!  OMSA will host its annual Alumni Weekend Multicultural Reception on Saturday, June 7th, 2008 at it's new home located at 5710 S. Woodlawn Avenue.  The reception will begin at 5pm with the LGBTQ Alumni joining in at 6 pm for a program that will recognize alumni involved in the founding of 5710 S. Woodlawn.  Come by to tour our new home! For more details on this program, contact Mary Vander Kinter at mvanderk@uchicago.edu.

OMSA Events. . .

Join OMSA for our 2nd Annual Race Studies Grant Symposium.  If you're interested in cutting edge research focused race and ethnicity in Chicago or issues of diversity in higher education, then join us as we showcase the work of the Race Studies Grant recipients.  This symposium will take place Thursday, May 8th at our Community Lounge at 5710 S. Woodlawn.  For more information, contact Rosa Yadira Ortiz at ryo@uchicago.edu.

For a complete list of OMSA sponsored events click here.

Join MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán) César Chávez/Dolores Huerta Commemoration Week will be held from Monday, March 31st through Friday, April 4th and will feature Marcos Muñoz and Emmsa Lozaon.  For more information please contact either co-chairs, Omar Ramirez at oramierz@uchicago.edu or Julia Barajas at jbarajas@uchicago.edu.

PanAsia will host their annual cultural show, as part of their annual PanAsia celebration, on Friday, April 18th.  This event entitled, HipHopistan, will feature Asian American hip hop artist from across the United Sates and will be held at University of Chicago's Lab School cafeteria.  For more information, please contact Yennie Lee at yennie@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.