Celebrate Latinx/Heritage Month!

Celebrating Latinx and Hispanic Heritage month is an important way to signal your students and staff that cultural competency and inclusion is an important priority. It’s true that an isolated effort doesn’t solve the problem, but incorporating cultural recognition months into the fabric of your diversity efforts is a good start. You may be thinking that you don’t have a diversity education plan for the year. It’s never too late to start. Send out a weekly email to your staff with a cultural education reminder, put up passive education posters, hold meetings for affinity groups and plan special events that celebrate diversity and culture. You don’t have to be an expert to infuse educational moments into the school day. Take advantage of equity and inclusion tools to make an impact. Our Latinx and Hispanic Heritage month deck is a perfect example. You’ll find 28 different questions that will provide insight and awareness into the Latinx and Hispanic culture. Use a question per day over the loud speaker in a K-12 school to provide a month of education and awareness for your students. Or, use a special training session to examine the entire deck. Explore topics like, “What does Latinx refer to?” or “What is the origin of New Mexico?” Historical information provides new enlightenment about the impact of the Latinx/Hispanic culture. If you don’t have our deck, be sure to consider other educational moments that symbolize your commitment to a rich, diverse learning environment. Bit by bit, you can make a difference in the lives of students and staff.

Transform Your Greek System

There’s no question about the importance of getting college students involved on campus. George Kuh talks about how an involved student is more likely to make it across the finish line. Sororities and fraternities are an excellent example of a student affinity group that provides support for members, community engagement, and a reason to stick around campus. We also know that the rich tradition and history of Greek organizations make inclusivity a challenge. Unfortunately, a racist chant or a social media post by a Greek group can set the tone for an entire system. Similarly, students often gravitate to people that they feel are most like them and this perpetuates sameness. It’s incumbent upon Greek advisors to provide diversity and multicultural awareness education. Students seek independence and self-awareness experiences when they come to college. Yes - who they are is rooted in their family upbringing, but who they want to become is a journey that can be impacted. Never underestimate the power of providing insightful and self-awareness based educational experiences. It begins with leadership. IFC and PHC leaders are representatives of the Greek system. Bring those leaders together, along with Chapter presidents and help them begin a realization journey. The decision to become a multiculturalist is in their hands, but the decision to provide multicultural insight is in the hands of the Greek and Chapter advisors. We don’t believe that one training will do the trick. Instead, it must be woven into the fabric of every day interactions. Our new training tool, “Greek Life Inclusion Deck” is a great place to start. You can use this dialogue deck to begin the conversation about what it means to be Greek and to be inclusive to all. The changing demographics of our society necessitates a change in how Greek chapters open their hearts and doors to diverse members. Start today with our training tools and craft a plan that will ensure a robust future of your Greek system.

Help your Greek System becoming Inclusive!