2016 Conference in Review |
Embracing Diversity & Inclusion: Critical Conversations
February 29 - March 1, 2016
Keynote addresses, student panel discussions, and facilitated dialogue sessions created opportunities for those present to share their experiences, research, and emerging trends in creating communities that embrace diversity in ways that welcome and include.
The 2016 Conference Featured Nationally Recognized Leaders in Diversity and Inclusion:
Lee A. Gill
Chief Diversity Officer and Special Assistant to the President for inclusive excellence
at Clemson University.
The recognition that Lee Gill’s leadership has received results from a career-long
dedication to embracing the needs of diverse student populations. He will describe
how a university community can strategically advance a vision of excellence that includes
all.
Adis M. Vila
Senior Fellow for the Institute for Cross Cultural Management at the Florida Institute
of Technology
Adis Vila brings career-long firsts to her advocacy for mentoring and intentional
methods to assure globally diverse leadership. With a passion for helping young people,
she draws on her own international, education, government, and military experiences
to describe inclusive communities.
Julia Serano
Writer, Performer, Activist & Author
Julia Serano draws on her own personal experiences having been viewed both female and male, and queer and straight, at different points in her life, to highlight how unconscious assumptions and expectations shape how we view other people.
Tahil Sharma
Youth Representative for the Parliament of the World’s Religions to the United Nations
Tahil Sharma addresses the importance of building a culture of respect for religious
and non-religious identities, mutually inspiring relationships across religious boundaries,
and common action for the common good.
2016 Conference Agenda
Monday, February 29, 2016
Luhr Building
475 E Lockwood Ave
Saint Louis, MO 63119
9:15 am–10:30 am
Landscape of Diversity & Inclusion for Regional Higher Education Institutions
Panel Discussion / No Charge
11 am–12:15 pm
African-American Students Shaping Tomorrow
Panel Discussion / No Charge
12:15 pm–1:30 pm
Adis Vila | "Diversity & Inclusion: Global Challenges & Opportunities"
Lunch Keynote (Lunch Included)
1:45 pm–3 pm
Hispanic Point of View
Panel Discussion / No Charge
3:30 pm–5 pm
Alumni Paying It Forward
Panel Discussion / No Charge
7 pm–8:30 pm
Lee Gill | Diversity: Inclusive Excellence Beyond the Numbers
Evening Keynote
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Luhr Building
475 E Lockwood Ave
Saint Louis, MO 63119
9 am–10:30 am
Tahil Sharma | Interfaith Cooperation: Pluralism in the 21st Century
Interactive Session / No Charge
11: am–12:15 pm
Disabilities and Accessibility (f. Aimee Wehmeier)
Panel Discussion / No Charge
12:15 pm–1:30 pm
Julia Serano | I'll See It When I Believe It: On Perception and Gender Entitlement
Lunch Keynote (Lunch Included)
1:45 pm–3 pm
Campus Pride - Safe Zone
Panel Discussion / No Charge
2016 Conference Sponsors
