Inclusive Excellence Summit

Susan Mann Dolce, Associate Director, Accessibility Resources; Rachel Bonnette, Post Doctoral Researcher and NSF Project Coordinator, Learning and Instruction, Graduate School of Education; Jeremy Raymore, Graduate Assistant, Student Engagement; and Kyle O’Neill, Training Facilitator, Organizational Development and Effectiveness, Human Resources

Neurodiversity Cultural Competency and Inclusive Practices will include essential information about the Neurodiversity Movement and its importance for student success, supported by spring 2022 survey data on the experiences of 174 UB students who identify as Neurodivergent or as an Ally. This presentation will include a review of current best practices for inclusivity in Higher Education, drawing on student recommendations. Attend and learn what Neurodivergent UB students have to say about finding belonging through improved access and inclusion at UB. 

Danielle Johnson, Director, Daniel Acker Scholars Program and Social Justice Initiatives, Cora P. Maloney Center (CPMC); Vivian Jimenez, Director, Tutoring and Academic Support Services, Office of Student Success and Academic Support; Allen C. Williams, Assistant Director of Retention Initiatives, Intercultural and Diversity Center; Poorva Bhatia, Graduate Student, Industrial and Systems Engineering Department, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Mirna Cadet, Undergraduate Student, Department of Economics, College of Arts and Sciences; Sarah Hale, Graduate Student, Department of Psychology, College of Arts and Sciences; Semat Hossain, Undergraduate Student, Department of Communication, College of Arts and Sciences; and Esther Turay, Undergraduate Student, Department of Psychology, College of Arts and Sciences

UB students are understanding and engaging in social justice work in deeply meaningful ways. Across disciplines, students are increasingly wanting to engage in this work and are recognizing the impact that they can have on their world. At this session, we will learn from the experiences of graduate and undergraduate students who feel connected to social justice, how their experiences before entering UB affected their drive for justice, and discuss how they plan to engage in this work after graduation. 

Amanda Ramia, Curriculum and Instructional Designer, Medical Education and Educational Research Institute (MEERI) and Research Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Behavioral Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; Sourav Sengupta, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Department of Psychiatry, and Director of Training - Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; Jennifer Meka, Director, Medical Education and Educational Research Institute (MEERI) and Associate Dean for Medical Education, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; and Henry Taylor, Director, UB Center for Urban Studies and Professor, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, School of Architecture and Planning 

This workshop will highlight healthcare experiences that are impacted by health inequities and social/structural determinants of health. The current state of representation of URiM (underrepresented in medicine) medical students, faculty and physicians, and the connection with ongoing health inequities and disparities will be discussed, with consideration of the “upstream causes of the causes” that have contributed to the current state of medicine. An overview of the progression of our antiracism curriculum development will also be included.

Ebehitale Imobhio, Assistant Director of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement, School of Public Health and Health Professions and Rose Thomas, Graduate Student, School of Social Work and School of Public Health and Health Professions

Students of color in higher education have reported increased rates of loneliness, anxiety, and other emotional difficulties. This trend has been found to be similar among several other marginalized student demographics including first generation students, low-income students, and disabled students. In the School of Public Health and Health Professions, two graduate students of color wanted to address this connection gap and isolation by utilizing their school’s alumni network. In order to foster academic, professional, and interpersonal growth for students of color in their school, these students worked to create a mentoring program that connected students of color with alumni of color. They believed it was important for our undergraduate students to build connections with alumni who have been through similar paths and experiences. During this session, we will discuss the history of this program, evaluative practices, successes, and lessons learned along the way and provide attendees with the opportunity to discuss how a similar program can be implemented in their departments or schools.

Derek Nichols, Associate Director for Sustainability, UB Sustainability

Negative environmental impacts are felt disproportionately more often in marginalized and disadvantaged communities, especially those that are primarily lived in by people of color. This session will focus on higher education's role in perpetuating these injustices and how to change for the better. 

Franchesca Arecy, Graduate Student, Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences; Hendrick Francois, Medical Student,  Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; Sarah Quinones, Graduate Student, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Health Professions; Brandon Salazar, Graduate Student, Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences; and Antara Satchidanand, Graduate Student, Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences 

The inclusion of minority students in higher education spaces is imperative for a diverse future across disciplines in research, medicine, STEM, among other fields where these individuals are underrepresented. Bouchrika (2022) reported that in 2023 2.3% of Hispanic or Latinx graduates earn a doctoral or professional degree. 1% of Black or African American graduates earn a doctorate or professional degrees. This is a total of 3.3% among Hispanic/Latinx and Black and African American graduate students. These statistics require further discussion.

Nat Voos, Graduate Student, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and Grant Parrelli, Medical Student, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

LGBTQ+ patients face multiple health disparities, and a lack of comprehensive training for medical students contributes to these disparities. We will explore the current practices at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences that have been implemented in order to adequately prepare medical students to care for LGBTQ+ patients. In addition, we will explore future directions that can be taken in medical education for creating curriculum designed around LGBTQ+ student and healthcare needs.

Odette Reid, Associate Director, The Center for Excellence in Writing and Rhonda Reid, Director, The Center for Excellence in Writing 

Linguistic Racism and language oppression on a university campus contributes to the negative experience of some students. The belief that there is only one way to write and speak alienates writers from various countries and those from different socioeconomic backgrounds. To promote Linguistic Justice (Baker-Bell, 2020) and eliminate language oppression, we must be intentional in our practices. Taking a translingual approach with multilingual writers and honoring the home literacies of students from diverse backgrounds are inclusive practices that can reduce biases.

Kristen Moore, Associate Professor, Engineering Education, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Rajan Batta, SUNY Distinguished Professor, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Diversity, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; and Matilde Sanchez-Pena, Assistant Professor, Department of Engineering Education, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences 

This presentation will explore an equity and inclusion-driven approach to faculty orientation. We will present on three key principles that drove the design of our orientation; 1) transparency builds towards equity; 2) inequity and oppression are designed; and 3) mentoring practices can be redesigned to be more inclusive.

Tiffany Du Mouchelle, Clinical Assistant Professor of Voice, Director of Vocal Performance, and Co-Director of Inhabiting Spaces 2023, Department of Music, College of Arts and Sciences and Lili Stern, Graduate Student, Arts Management Program and Producer for Inhabiting Spaces 2023, College of Arts and Sciences 

How is inclusion possible if people do not share space? Without shared space, be it in-person or virtual, dialogue is not possible. Inhabiting Spaces explores how cross-disciplinary creative collaboration offers pathways to inclusion, community, and understanding. In a university as large and diverse as the University at Buffalo, shared experiences must be cultivated. Du Mouchelle and Stern share their experiences and lead participants through exercises that explore dialogue, creative collaboration, and inclusivity.

Meg Syrell, Coordinator of Orientation, Transition and Parent Programs, Office of the Vice President for Student Life and Jeremy Jungbluth, Learning Designer for Inclusive Pedagogy, Office of Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation

Learning from and growing alongside others is an overarching goal of public higher education. Increasing our cultural humility and multicultural competence through an investment in our multicultural awareness, knowledge, skills, and action is necessary to develop and sustain a culturally responsive campus community. In this workshop, we provide a foundation for participants to define cultural humility and multicultural competence, discuss the inherent value to the University at Buffalo community, and offer effective strategies for sustaining inclusive institutional environments.

Susan Mann Dolce, Associate Director, Accessibility Resources, Rudraaksh Karthick Bhuvaneswari, Undergraduate Student, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Nakharin Homniyom, Graduate Student, School of Social Work; Megan Hunter, Undergraduate Student, Department of Theatre and Dance, College of Arts and Sciences; Jeremy Raymore, Graduate Student, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, Graduate School of Education; and Aniya Wiggins, Undergraduate Student, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Listen to graduate and undergraduate UB students share their experiences about navigating academics and student life as neurodivergent students. Students will respond to the questions and topics they think are most important for others to understand about their experiences at UB and beyond, including both challenges and the practices they believe support access. Opportunity for the audience to ask questions will be provided.

Edward Steinfeld, SUNY Distinguished Professor of Architecture, School of Architecture and Planning; Beth Tauke, Associate Professor, Department of Architecture, School of Architecture and Planning; Adam Thibodeaux, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Architecture, School of Architecture and Planning; and Elizabeth Bartelt, Clinical Assistant Professor, Community Health and Health Behavior, School of Public Health and Health Professions

This workshop will inform participants about research underway at UB on design of restrooms to support access by transgender and gender diverse populations and the development of a public interactive exhibit to debut at UB during Transgender Awareness Week this coming Fall. Using an active learning approach, the workshop will engage participants in generating and discussing questions about public restroom design, sharing stories about restroom experiences, and contributing to the design and planning of the exhibit.

Samantha Smith, Assistant Registrar for Enrollment and Transfer Credit, Office of the Registrar and Joseph Rizzo, Associate Registrar and Associate Director of HUB and Student Systems, Office of the Registrar

In this session, participants will learn the importance of respecting student's chosen identity through the use of displaying student's chosen name and preferred pronouns in UB's student information system. Through the use of videos and research, we will explore the deeper meaning behind respecting one's identity.

Yueqiu Zhang, Graduate Student, Department of Learning and Instruction, Graduate School of Education and Rhonda Reid, Director, The Center for Excellence in Writing 

To create and promote inclusive, connected, and multicultural campus environments for international students, administrators, faculty and staff need to shift the discourse from a deficit view point to a strength-based perspective; these multilingual and multicultural students' voices and perspectives need to be heard and valued, and thus their needs and strengths could be fully recognized and supported. Strength-based approach to inclusive education for international students also recognizes multicultural awareness and competence as contributing factors to enhancing understanding among diverse populations in the UB community.

D'Ann Keller, Senior Associate Athletics Director/SWA, Division of Athletics; Sarah Tranelli, Director of Communications, Athletic Communications, Division of Athletics; and Erik Silis, Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance, Division of Athletics

UB Athletics is committed to cultivating a culture of inclusion through active engagements, partnerships and celebrations. Through a variety of organizational initiatives, our strategy must be more than reacting to today's environment, our goals must follow a purposeful strategy upheld by our strategic pillars that challenge our current systems to aid in progress.

Najla Hrustanovic, Counseling Adjunct Instructor, Counseling, School and Educational Psychology, Graduate School of Education and Dr. Rasha Mohamed, Antioch University Faculty

The limitations of teaching social justice courses in higher education are two-fold: 1) teaching through a singular white-centered lens due to majority-white faculty pool, perpetuating a cycle of oppression and unintentional harm, 2) faculty of color being assigned as the only faculty teaching these courses, placing undue burden and challenges on faculty of color to teach those courses. In response to these teaching limitations, this presentation offers a different model that centers on the power of co-facilitation in social justice-based courses. This presentation will explore the benefits of this model, its impact on student learning outcomes, and implementation of counselor future advocacy and leadership. What this model makes clear is that there are opportunities to structure social justice courses in ways that bring about collaboration, community, and inspiration for collective advocacy. Recommendations for further teaching research and training will also be discussed.

Virginia Stever, Administrative Director, Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science

Your Name Matters! addresses understanding the importance of people's names and how to better pronounce them more closely to the way people pronounce them themselves. The approach is light and audience interaction is critical to its success. The system does not teach others how to speak other languages but rather provides a simple set of rules that help speakers approximate the pronunciation of people’s names. First impressions are important and can be instrumental in building trusting relationships. And it's fun!

Bernadette Gargano, Lecturer and Vice Dean of Student Affairs, School of Law and Lucinda Finley, Professor and Program Director for Appellate Advocacy, School of Law

In public schools, conflicts over Free Speech have been at the forefront of current nationwide disputes.  From firings for course content to speakers spewing hate speech to the banning of books and curriculum, we are at a critical time to understand what it means to have "Free Speech." The panel will provide an overview of the law and its history, and then provide a forum for stakeholders to generate ideas, especially in the context of creating an environment of belonging. 

Mary Odden, Assessment Specialist, Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation; Cathleen Morreale, Assistant Vice Provost for Educational Effectiveness and Learning Analytics, Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation; and Athena Tsembelis, Assessment Reporting Specialist, Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation

Participants will learn about the different aspects of equity in assessment. Presenters will provide case studies and examples from their work in the Office of Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation. After a brief presentation, attendees will practice applying those principles and develop their own equitable and culturally responsive materials for their course, program, or service.

Jacqueline Hollins, Committee Chair; Interim Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence, Provost Office

Poorva Bhatia, Graduate Assistant, Office of the Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence

Ramelli L. Choates, Senior Associate Director, Cora P. Maloney Center

Giambattista Davis, Academic Advisor and EDI Coordinator, University Honors College

Benjamin L. Fabian, Associate Director for Student Support and Resources, Dean of Students Office

Vivian Jimenez, Director of Tutoring and Academic Support, Office of Student Success and Academic Support

Danielle Johnson, Director Social Justice Initiatives and Daniel Acker Scholars Program, Cora P. Maloney Center

Susan Mann Dolce, Associate Director, Accessibility Resources

Amber Melvin, Assistant Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence, Office of the Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence

David Mines, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Investigator, Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Derek J. Nichols, Associate Director for Sustainability, UB Sustainability

Sharon Sanford, Associate Athletic Director, Division of Athletics

Jodi Valenti-Protas, Staff Assistant, Office of the Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence

Allen C. Williams, Assistant Director for Retention Initiatives, Intercultural and Diversity Center