Kansas State University

KSUnite breakout session highlights and plenary speakers

Submitted by KSUnite Planning Committee

On Tuesday, Oct. 12, the Kansas State University community will gather in a hybrid format for the annual KSUnite event. This year's event will include two plenary speakers and nine breakout sessions highlighting various topics at different levels on the diversity continuum. The KSUnite webpage will serve as your connection to the event.

Plenary speaker No. 1 noon-12:45 p.m.

• Minnijean Brown-Trickery will present "Return to Little Rock: A Seminal Moment in American Civil Right and Education." As a living witness to history ― and as an active participant who has helped shape it ― Brown-Trickey delivers a fascinating exploration of social change, diversity and the battle against racism throughout the decades, from the beginnings of her involvement in the Civil Rights Movement to the present day. Unerringly hopeful but realistic, she is a stately speaker who helps today’s students understand both how far we have come and how far we still have to go in the battle for freedom and equality.

Plenary speaker No. 2 1-1:45 p.m.

• Caleb Stephens will present "Community Building, Vulnerability, and Mental Health." Stephens will present on the complex yet essential interconnectivity of community building, vulnerability and mental health. The focus will be on marginalized and oppressed identities. This presentation will help to draw direct lines of applicability in ways we can utilize vulnerability and courage within our communities to solidify and even fortify hope, trust and connection.

Period 1 breakout sessions are highlighted below and will take place from 2-2:45 p.m:

• "Archives and Absence: The Role of the Institutional Archive in Retaining Cultural Memory (Part 2)"
  Helena Egbert, processing archivist; Irina Rogova, digital resources archivist; and Veronica Denison, university archivist, Hale Library. 

• "Assessment of Diversity Experience of Kansas State University College of Agriculture undergraduates during the COVID-19 pandemic"
  Zelia Z. Wiley, assistant dean and director, Diversity Programs Office; Lonnie Hobbs, Jr. graduate research assistant, agricultural economics department; Raymond Thomas, graduate research assistant, agricultural economics department; Summer Santillana, undergraduate research assistant, diversity programs office; and Andrew Barkley, professor, agricultural economics department. 

• "Music: What you see in the microscope in response to and as a forecaster of social justice"
  Julie Yu, professor of music, College of Arts and Sciences. 

• "'People like us': Barriers that prevent White women from intervening when Black women are being harassed or assaulted"
  Stephanie Foran and Alayna Colbrn, survivor advocates, Center for Advocacy, Response, and Education. 

• "Sikhs: Who are they?"
  Manreet S. Bhullar, research assistant professor, horticulture and natural resources.

Period 2 breakout sessions are highlighted below and will take place from 3-3:45 p.m:

• "#StopAAPIHate: A Brief History of Asians in America"
  Michele Janette, English department; Tom Sarmiento, associate professor, English department; and Aishah Chaudhry, undergraduate. 

• "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Toolkit"
  Olivia Law-DelRosso, assistant dean for diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging; and Rebecca Gould, marketing career coach, College of Business. 

• "What we do and where we should go to support BIPOC student success: A listening session"
  Jeannie Brown Leonard, vice provost for student success, Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President; and Kimathi Choma, assistant dean of diversity, recruitment and retention, College of Arts and Sciences.

• "The World is Waiting: Institutionalizing DEIB for Transformational Change"
  Pedro Silva Espinoza, teaching assistant professor and diversity point person, College of Education; Mona Menking, director of global education outreach, College of Education; Graciela Berumen, program coordinator, College of Education; and Chloe Wurst, diversity coordinator, College of Education.