Diversity Events

In service of Miami's strategic initatives and our internal goals for celebrating diversity throughout IT Services, the Diversity Committee hosts various events and get-togethers to celebrate other cultures.

In the past, we have hosted film screenings and invited folks from around the University to have a conversation with us about diversity and its important role in both our working and personal lives. Below, you'll find information about these past events as well as upcoming presentations we're planning.


Upcoming Events

 

Stay tuned for more information!

 

Past Events

2023

IT Services Diversity Committee Presents: Learning about Ramadan with the Miami Community

We invited Mahir Rahman, a Muslim and computer science student, to tell us about Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic faith. He gave us an overview of Islam and then talked about the traditions observed during Ramadan and after, during Eid al-Fitr.

IT Services Diversity Committee Presents: Film Fest 2023

This year's film festival focused on LGBTQIA+ issues and media. We watched three short films:

Each film examines a different facet of LGBTQ+ culture and experience. We were led in discussion by Tina Coyne, the assistant director for LGBTQ+ and gender equality for the Office of Diversity Affairs.

Embrace is a beautiful, animated short film (five minutes long) by Tesha Merkel about asexuality and what it’s like to discover you’re asexual. The Real Thing is about an enlisted father coming home to his daughter, who transitioned while he was deployed. Ode to Pablo uses an intersectional lens to examine what being a gay, deaf man is like. As Tina led the discussion, she asked audience members their reactions to the films and what kinds of themes were displayed.

2022

Diwali Celebration

In October, the IT Services Diversity Committee, the Indian Student Association, and several members of the IT Services staff helped bring awareness of the Hindu holiday of Diwali.

Check out the video and learn more about this important holiday!

Safe Zone Training

The IT Services Diversity Committee invited all of IT Services to join for a round of Safe Zone Training facilitated by the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion.

IT Diversity Film Fest: Freedom Summer

Our yearly film festival was a success. We made our triumphant return to Boyd Hall to break bread with one another and discussed the films:

  • Training for Freedom: A Freedom Summer Documentary and
  • Songs for Freedom: The Music Behind the Freedom Summer Trainings

Read more about the day in the IT News.

2021

ISSS Workshops

The IT Services Diversity Committee and International Student & Scholar Services hosted a workshop for IT employees and friends across campus designed to educate about the experience of international students at Miami.

IT Services Diversity Film Fest: Feeling Through

The IT Diversity Committee brought in our partners from the Miller Center for Student Disability Services to help us discuss this year’s film: Feeling Through.

Read the full invite on the IT Services news site.

2020

DEI in IT with Trey Boynton

The IT Services Diversity Committee invited Trey Boynton from Cisco Systems to speak with us about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and the role played by the technology world in how challenges of equality are being met.

Read about the discussion now.

IT Services Diversity Film Fest: What is white privilege?

Dr. Coates joined us via Webex to talk about current events surrounding racial justice and about Miami's DEI efforts. He agreed to moderate a discussion and speak with us about white privilege and white spaces. This event served as our annual film fest, though virtual this year.

The videos we watched and discussed included:

Peggy McIntosh: How to recognize your white privilege -- and use it to fight inequality (TED)
Many of us believe that we're living in a meritocracy, deserving of what we have and compassionate toward those with less. But that's not true: white people have been given a headstart and ongoing advantages due to the color of their skin, while people of color suffer from equally arbitrary disadvantages, says scholar and activist Peggy McIntosh. She explains what led her to recognize her privilege — and how it can be used by those with power to ensure a fairer life for others.

Watch this video.

Northwest Now: White Privilege (PBS)
In January 2018, PBS sat down with one nationally renowned advocate (Eddie Moore) who makes it his life's work to educate the public about exactly what white privilege is.

Watch this video.

Discussion questions

  • What does white privilege mean to you?
  • How can white people use their privilege at Miami to help enforce/improve/strengthen DEI initiatives?
  • Does everybody have some sort of privilege?
  • How does my privilege blind me?
  • How can I use my privileges to empower others?

2019

Lunch & Learn with Myaamia Center and Miami Tribe

We welcomed representatives from the Myaamia Center and three members of the Miami Tribe to talk about the work they are doing with language and culture revitalization. IT Services has partnered with the Myaamia Center to support the ILDA and MIDA language databases.

Film Festival: Of Many—August 2019

John-Charles Duffy sitting in front of the classroom on a table, staring expectantly at the class

John-Charles Duffy, from the Comparative Religion department, joined us for a discussion of the documentary Of Many. The movie is about the relationship between an orthodox rabbi and an imam in New York City.

From the film's website: “Through a series of voyages to communities struck by catastrophe, we witness young religious Jews and Muslims working together and overcoming long-standing divides. Timely and humorous, this short documentary offers an inspiring and hopeful narrative in the face of a seemingly irreconcilable conflict.”

More information can be found at the film’s site.

Green Zone Training

Emma Wott teaching IT Services about what it's like to be an ex-military student

Emma Wott, senior theatre and religion double major and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, presented Green Zone Training to a group of 40 IT folks. The training centered on how best to support student veterans and how their undergraduate experience is different from that of "traditional" students.

Read more about the Green Zone Training.

2018

AccessMU and MUCAT Lunch and Learn—November 2018

A lunch and learn event hosted in conjunction with the Miami University Center for Assistive Technology showcasing accessible tech created by Miami students.

IT Services Diversity Film Fest—July 2018

We showed a film called In Whose Honor?, a documentary by filmmaker Jay Rosenstein about the practice of using Native Americans as mascots for sports teams—something that hits pretty close to home here at Miami. The film, which premiered on PBS in August 1997, won numerous awards and was broadcast internationally to great acclaim.

More information can be found at the film’s site.

In addition to the documentary, we showed a short video about Miami’s own experience with this issue and invited discussion afterward. Ron Scott, associate vice president of institutional diversity at Miami, was there to facilitate discussion after we viewed the films.

View photos from the Film Fest on Facebook.


Understanding MU Chinese Students

The Diversity Committee hosted a conversation with Ms. Chen Zhao, director of the Confucius Institute at Miami University. She discussed how to more effectively communicate and engage with the Chinese students who attend Miami. Ms. Zhao also helped break down day-to-day interactions with Chinese students and showed how cultural differences may impact how we communicate.

For a recap of the event and the points covered by Ms. Zhao's discussion, please see our IT Services newsletter article.

2017

  • A Taste of Soul: Black History Month Lunch and Learn event in conjunction with Dr. Tammy Kernodle and the Music Department (February 22)
  • IT Services Diversity Film Festival: "A Class Divided"
  • Access for All Symposium: November 2017

2016

  • Fundamentals of Chinese Culture (February 11, March 18)
  • Effective Listening Workshop (May 3)
  • Film Festival 2016: Gateways to Inclusion (July 13)
  • Exploring Cross-Cultural Communication (November 2)

2015

  • Effective Listening Workshop (March 18, 24)
  • Film Festival 2015: Clown and Four Generations: The Greatest Potential (June 12)
  • Heritage Potluck (November 13)

2014

  • Film Festival 2014 (August 13)
  • Freedom Summer (September 17)
  • Effective Listening Workshop (October 14, 20)

Partnership Events

The Access for All Accessible Technology Symposium is an annual event designed to cultivate discussion of current issues and trends in accessible technology. Various breakout sessions provide information about universal design and how to build accessible content for classroom and marketing materials.

Please visit the AccessMU website for more information.

In the past, we have hosted similar events to the March 14, 2018, "Understanding MU Chinese Students" presentation. We have partnered with the Confucius Institute to bring awareness to cultural differences between American and Chinese students.

The aim of Green Zone Program is to create a knowledgeable and supportive Miami community which will help military-affiliated students succeed. The presenters facilitate a discussion on a number of issues military-affiliated students face, what strengths they bring to academia, and how to understand and support these students.

Read about our January 2019 Green Zone Training.

The Safe Zone Program provides the campus community with the knowledge and skills necessary to create an environment that is welcoming and affirming of gender and sexuality differences. All members of the campus community-students, faculty, and staff of all genders, gender expressions, and sexual identities-are invited to join the Safe Zone Network.

The IT Services Diversity Committee has in the past sponsored Safe Zone Training for our staff members. For now, interested members of the Miami community can sign up to participate in one of the currently available classes: Safe Zone 101, Safe Zone 201, and Trans* 101.

For more information about Safe Zone training, please view the Miami University website.

Access for All

The Access for All Accessible Technology Symposium is an annual event designed to cultivate discussion of current issues and trends in accessible technology. Various breakout sessions provide information about universal design and how to build accessible content for classroom and marketing materials.

Please visit the AccessMU website for more information.

Chinese Culture

In the past, we have hosted similar events to the March 14, 2018, "Understanding MU Chinese Students" presentation. We have partnered with the Confucius Institute to bring awareness to cultural differences between American and Chinese students.

Green Zone

The aim of Green Zone Program is to create a knowledgeable and supportive Miami community which will help military-affiliated students succeed. The presenters facilitate a discussion on a number of issues military-affiliated students face, what strengths they bring to academia, and how to understand and support these students.

Read about our January 2019 Green Zone Training.

Safe Zone

The Safe Zone Program provides the campus community with the knowledge and skills necessary to create an environment that is welcoming and affirming of gender and sexuality differences. All members of the campus community-students, faculty, and staff of all genders, gender expressions, and sexual identities-are invited to join the Safe Zone Network.

The IT Services Diversity Committee has in the past sponsored Safe Zone Training for our staff members. For now, interested members of the Miami community can sign up to participate in one of the currently available classes: Safe Zone 101, Safe Zone 201, and Trans* 101.

For more information about Safe Zone training, please view the Miami University website.