Inclusive Excellence Newsletter - December 2023
Dear SCU Community:
It was just yesterday that we were kicking off the start of the academic year, and today, we find ourselves in the final stretches of this Fall term. For both the undergraduate and graduate students, it is a busy time with final projects and exams. We encourage you to stay focused and seek help if you encounter any problems. For our faculty and staff colleagues, thank you for your efforts during this time as your work is critical in ensuring the continued success of our community.
The end of the Fall term also represents a special time with a number of special holidays and spiritual traditions that reflect the brilliant diversity of the SCU community. From the start of the Advent session (12/3), to Hannukah (12/7), the tradition of the Posadas, Christmas (12/25), the start of Kwanzaa (12/26) and the start of the New Year (1/1). We encourage you to learn about these and many other traditions.
We hope you have a restorative break and look forward to connecting with you in the New Year.
UNIT UPDATES
I. Inclusive Excellence Division
- Vice President Duncan Smith has been busy serving on the Executive Vice President and Provost Search Committee, and also as the Chair of the Search for the Director of Campus Ministry. We encourage the community to participate in the respective campus forums for these candidates.
- We wanted to send a special thank you to the SCU community for their support of the Camino de los Muertos event that was held on Saturday, November 4th. It was an amazing event in collaboration with Univision, the Mexican Consulate in San Jose and fellow SCU departments – Enrollment Management and Mission and Ministry. We are excited about continuing to grow and expand this in the future. Check out some of the media coverage here and here. You can also see a slideshow with pictures from the event here.
- In case you missed the announcement, we are honored to have received the INSIGHT Into Diversity Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) for the third straight year. We could not have done this without the ongoing support and engagement by all members of the SCU community.
II. LEAD Scholars
- Early November, LEAD celebrated First-Gen Week and hosted the FLI Forward Conference - a first at SCU! In addition we had a beautiful fire-side chat with President Julie Sullivan which was attended by students, faculty, staff, alumni, and SCU community members.
- In observance of Thanksgiving, the LEAD Scholars Program hosted a LEAD Friendsgiving event for LEAD Scholars who were on campus over break.
- On November 30th, the LEAD Scholars Program hosted the annual Holiday Szn party to close out the quarter with all of our students.
- Throughout the quarter, the LEAD staff engaged with nearly 40 current students who expressed interest in becoming part of the LEAD Scholars program. Of these, 30 students have officially joined the LEAD Scholars program. This marks a record number of students joining our program during the Winter Quarter!
- Lastly, LEAD is reviewing the incoming Winter Quarter, First-Generation Transfer applicants and plans to invite them to join the program.
III. Office for Equal Opportunity and Title IX
- We wanted to share that Aaron Zisser has left SCU and we wish him the best in his next chapter. We welcomed our interim Director of Equal Opportunity and Title IX Coordinator Brandi Williams (bwilliams2@scu.edu) on November 27th. Please join us in giving Brandi a warm welcome into the SCU Community.
IV. Office of Accessible Education (OAE)
- Happy finals week from the OAE!!
- The Office of Accessible Education will be open for testing only December 4th through the 8th. All tutoring or studying will need to take place in other locations on campus as the office will be completely quiet and only available for testing.
- If you have not scheduled an exam with the OAE yet, this will need to happen as soon as possible in order to get a space to test.
- A reminder that the office will be closed for Christmas and we will be back in January to start with Winter testing.
V. Office for Diversity and Inclusion (ODI)
- In partnership with ASG and the SCU Student Veterans of America Chapter, SCU celebrated Veterans Day on Friday, November 10th with a special wreath-laying ceremony and a luncheon with remarks by Brigadier General Steven McLaughlin ’94. A special thank you to Evan Fine and his ASG colleagues and Keanu Spindola, President of the SCU SVA for their efforts.
- Department/Unit Climate Studies - since 2020, ODI has helped different academic and non-academic units conduct and implement a departmental climate study. If your department/area is interested in such a study in Winter/Spring 2024, please reach out to rplaza@scu.edu.
- Tenure Track positions for the 2024-2025 academic year continue to remain open. Please share information about these exciting opportunities with your colleagues and peers at other institutions. To learn more, please visit: https://www.scu.edu/hr/careers
- Please continue to give to support the Ohlone and Muwekma Ohlone Student Scholarship. The scholarship was officially endowed and announced on Indigenous People’s Day in 2022. We need your contributions to help further expand the scholarship.
- Save the Date: The 2nd Annual Native American Symposium will be held on Friday, May 3, 2023, and the 4th SCU PowWow is scheduled for Saturday, May 5, 2024. Stay tuned for future emails to learn about ways to get involved on the planning committee.
- To those that requested the limited edition Los Broncos shirts in October, expect an email on December 4th with instructions on how/where to pick-up your t-shirts.
VI. Office for Multicultural Learning (OML)
- In observance of November being Native American Heritage Month, OML/RRC highlighted the New York Times Bestseller, Fire Keeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley. We encourage you to find and read the transformational novel!
- OML/RRC is wishing you all restoration, health and wellness as we near the end of 2023. Our office will be celebrating Kwanzaa (December 26th-January 1st) and Hanukkah (December 7th-December 15th) with social media posts, honoring the history of both holidays and the communities that celebrate them. We have a curated holiday playlist on our Spotify account that features songs for Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa called It's the Holiday Season! Stay tuned to our Instagram (@scuoml) for more!
- We want to highlight a celebration taking place on Friday, December 1st with the 24th celebration of the Posadas at SCU from 5:30pm - 9:00pm in Locatelli Center. Traditionally coordinated by Sigma Lambda Beta Fraternity Incorporated, this year, they are supported by the Latinx Employee Resource Group (ERG) and the Office for Diversity and Inclusion. The Posadas is a religious festival celebrated in Mexico and in other parts of the Americas that commemorates the journey Joseph and Mary made from Nazareth to Bethlehem in search of a safe place to stay where Mary could give birth to Jesus. The event includes traditional foods and the caminita (procession) that involves singing.
VII. Office of the University Ombuds
- The University Ombuds provides impartial, informal and confidential communication support services to faculty and staff. The Ombuds assists visitors by listening and helping to clarify goals, identify challenges, workshop communication strategies for effective discussion, and provides mediation and facilitation to pairs and groups. The Ombuds aims to promote dialogue, dignity, and respect.
- If you would like to set a confidential meeting with the Ombuds to explore your situation, contact the Office of the Ombuds at ombuds@scu.edu; 408-551-3542.
DEI RESOURCES FROM THE LIBRARY
The Library is embracing the winter wonderland with a book display at our Library Help Desk. This theme highlights library resources that celebrate the season, explore a variety of holidays, and introduce good reads that can keep you warm throughout the winter break.
Remember to Ask a Librarian for Additional Resources!
eBook Recommendations:
Happy holidays--animated! : a worldwide encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's cartoons on television and film
Description: Since the early 20th century, animated Christmas cartoons have brightened the holiday season around the world--first in theaters, then on television. From devotional portrayals of the Nativity to Santa battling villains and monsters, this encyclopedia catalogs more than 1,800 international Christmas-themed cartoons and others with year-end themes of Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and the New Year. Explore beloved television specials such as A Charlie Brown Christmas, theatrical shorts such as Santa's Workshop, holiday episodes from animated television series like American Dad! and The Simpsons, feature films like The Nutcracker Prince and obscure productions such as The Insects' Christmas, along with numerous adaptations and parodies of such classics as A Christmas Carol and Twas the Night before Christmas.
The Book of the Year : A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays
Description: What is the connection between May Day and the Statue of Liberty? Between ancient solstice fires and Fourth of July fireworks? Between St. Valentine, the Groundhog, and the Virgin Mary? In The Book of the Year, Anthony Aveni offers fascinating answers to these questions and explains the many ways humans throughout time have tried to order and give meaning to time's passing. Aveni traces the origins of modern customs tied to seasonal holidays, exploring what we eat, the games we play, the rituals we perform, and the colorful cast of characters we invent to dramatize holidays. - Publisher
Streaming Media Recommendations:
The Nutcracker Ballet
Description: This classic tale takes place on the night before Christmas, when Clara and Franz receive a Nutcracker as a gift from their uncle. This present sparks a magical dream, and a night filled with amazing stories and characters. The Mouse King, Sugar Fairies, Chime Puppets and other timeless characters, makes this ballet, set to Tchaikovsky’s music, an unforgettable experience.
Christmas Break - Relaxing Jazz for the Holidays
Description: a collection of traditional Christmas songs interpreted by some of the most prominent jazz players of the last few decades. This festive but easygoing compilation features performances by Oscar Peterson, Mel Torme, Dave Brubeck, Ray Brown, Al Di Meola and more.
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: RICARDO CORTEZ '07
The Alumni Association invites the SCU Community to join Ricardo Cortez '07, for a great conversation regarding his story and how he's come to write his first book, ABCs of Lowriding. You can register here to listen in via Zoom on Tuesday, December 5 at 12 Noon.
A few days later, Ricardo will be signing books at the upcoming event, Laying Low for the Holidays on December 9, from 12 - 4 pm. We are inviting alumni, staff, faculty, students, and families who are interested in attending!
WISHING THE SCU COMMUNITY A RESTFUL BREAK, HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND NEW YEAR!
The Inclusive Excellence Team at their Bowling Social in late October 2023
