Join the Diversity Committee for a Lunch and Learn discussion and Q&A on Thursday, October 8, noon to 1:30 p.m.

Via Zoom: https://tennessee.zoom.us/j/93898850866

In this unique moment of national reckoning on racial injustice, we should expand the conversation to encompass Native Americans. The UT Libraries’ Diversity Committee and the Native American Student Association have convened a panel who can lend authoritative voices to that dialog. All panelists have Indigenous ancestry; most are members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Our panelists will offer invaluable perspectives on present-day issues affecting Native Americans.

Thursday, September 17th from noon – 1:30

via Zoom: https://tennessee.zoom.us/j/94681870936

Lunch and Learn: How to be an Anti-Racist from Theory to Practice

Sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Student Life and the Pride Center

Kirsten A. Gonzalez, Ph.D., [she, her, hers] is an assistant professor of psychology, and a core faculty member in women, gender, and sexuality studies, and Latin American & Caribbean studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville UTK. As the director of the Research on Social Intersections at Tennessee (ReSIsT) Lab, her scholarship focuses broadly on the psychological well-being of LGBTQ+ People of Color, including experiences of belonging and community connection and the impact of sociopolitical events on the well-being of people across race/ethnicity, gender identity, and sexual orientation. She focuses on the intersection of Latinx and LGBTQ+ identities and migration experiences of Latinx community members. A third line of her scholarship is focused on allyship and social justice advocacy. As a licensed psychologist, she teaches graduate courses in cognitive assessment and foundations in counseling psychology, an undergraduate course in multicultural psychology, and provides clinical supervision to counseling psychology doctoral students at UTK.

Dr. Camille Hall, is Professor and Associate Dean for Equity and Inclusion in the College of Social Work, Knoxville. She joined the faculty in 2004. Dr. Hall received her BSW & BSW at New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM and her Ph.D. from Smith College, Northampton, MA. She is a clinical social work officer in the US Army Reserve, assigned to Irwin Army Community Hospital in Fort Riley, Kansas. Dr. Hall was the former chairperson of the UTK Commission for Blacks, appointed to the University of Tennessee’s Diversity Advisory Council (5-years), and is a member of STRIDE (Strategies and Tactics for Recruiting to Improve Diversity and Excellence). Dr. Hall’s research focuses on African American’s risk and resilience and multicultural competence. She developed and leads an international service learning/community engagement program in San Jose, Costa Rica. Dr. Hall’s evidence-based course instruction model for multicultural competence is taught at 25-colleges/universities.

Clarence L. Vaughn, III, is the director of the Office of Diversity and Community Relations in the Haslam College of Business, at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. As diversity and community relations director, Vaughn provides strategic leadership in creating an integrated vision and shared responsibility for facilitating the college’s diversity goals and for fostering and supporting a campus culture that respects and appreciates individual differences. Through collaboration with offices across the college and university, he is assigned with advancing diversity and inclusion in the university’s research and educational missions, creating a welcoming environment for students, faculty and staff. He holds an MBA in organizational management from Syracuse University, a BS in business management from Florida A&M and an AA in business management from Tallahassee Community College.

Shaina V. Destine is an Assistant Professor/Humanities Librarian with a specialization in History and Medieval and Renaissance Studies at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.  Ms. Destine received her Master’s in Library & Information Science from the University of Maryland in College Park with a concentration in Archives and Digital Curation.

Shaina Destine identifies as a Black Queer woman and was born and raised in the South Bronx in New York City.  She’s the oldest of seven siblings and a perpetual optimist. She is the descendant, as well as the ancestor, of a long line of resilient and powerful women. She has an interest in increasing archival holdings by including narratives that are traditionally excluded. She also uses her institutional knowledge and positions to increase students’ access to information despite systemic disenfranchisement. #GoLadyVols

The UT Libraries Diversity Committee hosts and participates in a number of campus-wide activities to promote civility and awareness of diversity issues.

Past Events:  2019-2020 |2018-2019 |2017-2018 | 2016-2017 | 2015-2016 | 2014-2015 | 2013-2014 | 2012-2013