To Change the World, We Have to First Dream It
More than 300 attend “Thriving RWU 2030: A Summit on Diversity and 包容”
布里斯托尔,R.I. – More than 300 people – including 罗杰威廉姆斯 University students, 教师, 工作人员, and members of the greater community – turned out Tuesday for an intensive, inspiring daylong workshop to envision a more inclusive and equitable future at RWU.
At “Thriving RWU 2030: A Summit on Diversity and 包容,“校园和更大的社区发起了一项长期倡议，为更大的公平创造了一条前进的道路, RWU的包容性和多样性.
“今天, 我们可以举办一场为期一天的美好活动，成为一种记忆——或者我们可以发起一场革命，其中的同谋者包括高级领导人, 一年级大学生, 小学生, internal employees and community partners,艾米说。. Lambert, who began working as RWU’s inaugural chief diversity officer in June. “I invite us to honor the spirit of our namesake 罗杰威廉姆斯 通过大胆地在这个领域脱颖而出，并做深入的工作，确保我们将获得我们所寻求的影响. 让我们全力以赴.”
唐纳德·J. 法里什指出RWU的目标是“to build the university the world needs now,“部分”是通过聘用教职员工来实现的, 招收学生, 谁反映了我们地区的多样性.“但问题不仅仅是如何在学生和教师中创造更大的多样性, 他说, 它还涉及到这样的问题:“我们如何创造一个环境，让以前不是我们社区一部分的人能够茁壮成长。?”
法里什说:“我们一直看到，今天在这个国家，这是一场来之不易的斗争. “There are as many steps backward as there are forward. 所以事实上很多人都说, "这是一场我想亲自参与的对话"这让我感到乐观, 作为一个社区工作, 我们可以设计一个我们想要成为其中一员的未来社区:一个更具包容性的社区, 一个更多元化的社区，一个继续反映我们在这所大学所珍视的价值观的社区.”
迎接2030届毕业生
为了让参与者为展望RWU的未来做好准备，一群来自 次2 茎学院, 普罗维登斯特许学校, 提供了一种情感, 一天的激励高潮, 作为2030届毕业生的代表，走上舞台，畅谈自己的梦想.
时代2 学生们一直在研究牧师. 马丁·路德·金., who once told his mother, “One day I am going to turn this world upside down.《网赌的十大网站》杂志2 执行董事Rudolph A. 莫斯利小. asked them 如何 they intend to turn the world upside down.
“我想当市长，”三年级学生杰米尔·泰勒回答说，“努力让这座城市变得更美好.”
Other students talked about wanting to be a nurse, a soldier or an emergency doctor.
Moseley asked the students to close their eyes and say: “I’m brilliant. 我聪明. 我是一个改变世界的人. 我创新. 我有好主意. 我要改变世界.”
Following that, the audience in unison told the students, “You can do it!”
莫斯利指出，没有多少三年级学生能够去大学参加像周二峰会这样的活动. “这太神奇了。. They will never forget this as long as they live,” 他说. “我们必须创造更多这样的机会，让学生们有归属感——‘我属于大学环境,’ that ‘I belong in a professional environment.“你就是这样做的.”
“In order to change the world, we have to first dream it,” Moseley said. “You have to see it, you have to believe it, and then once we see the dream, then the 如何 变得似是而非的.”
我们在哪里，我们应该在哪里
Before diving into small group brainstorming sessions, a trio of RWU students provided context for the day’s discussions.
戴安娜菲格罗亚, a Latina student majoring in historic preservation at 罗杰威廉姆斯, said Latinx students now make up just 6.百分之二的RWU学生和百分之四.百分之三的教职员工. “但到2030年，拉丁语将成为高中网赌的十大网站率的主要增长引擎，”她说. “By 2030, we will be the second largest student population in the U.S. and will be 43 percent more than today’s enrollment numbers. 教育领导者必须把重点放在拉丁裔学生的多样性以及他们从幼儿园到大学和职业生涯的成功上.”
梅格·西尔维斯特·德拉·丁科, an Asian-American student majoring in international business, said Asian students make up less than 2 percent of RWU students and 4.百分之三的教职员工. “从2025年到2030年，亚洲高中学生的水平将是我国网赌的十大网站率增长的重要贡献者，比今天的数字高出27%,”她说。. “除了东亚和南亚的学生外，还会有更多的东南亚学生. 这些学生中的许多人有着不同的经历和需求，而模范少数族裔神话并没有充分满足这些需求. 教育机构需要对数据进行分类，满足这些人群的独特需求.”
泰勒波特, a black student majoring in architecture, said black students make up less than 3 percent of RWU students and 3.4%的教职员工. “By 2030, there will actually be 6 percent fewer black high school graduates, which means that there is a need to ensure that more of us get to and through college,”她说。. 然而，这并不是故事的全部. I am a Jamaican-American and immigration will shape America’s future, regardless of who is in office or what policies are in place. 我们在这里，我们会一直来. The number of immigrants is projected to increase from current levels over 33.900万至38万.到2035年将达到500万.”
Creating a Vision for the RWU Class of 2030
当天晚些时候, the crowd broke into smaller groups that delved into five areas: student access and success; employee access and success; campus climate and intergroup relations; education, scholarship and service; infrastructure (leadership, 能力, 系统和组织变革).
这些小组提出了一系列的想法, including calls to align RWU’s reward system for 教师 and 工作人员 with the values of diversity and inclusion; to build places for affinity groups, including a place for multi-faith worship; to build a student union; to increase supports for minoritized students; and to strengthen connections between the Providence and Bristol campuses.
“Let me remind us of something we know: We can do hard things,” Lambert said. “Regardless of what the obstacles are or what our experiences have been so far, 我们可以解决这个难题. So let’s get to hoping and working, and let’s amaze ourselves and the world. 因为正如纳尔逊·曼德拉(Nelson Mandela)所说的那样，“在事情完成之前，它总是看起来不可能。.’ ”
Lambert said task forces will synthesize the output from the five discussion areas, 以及一个多元化的战略计划, equity and inclusion will be presented to the RWU Board of Trustees in May.
但这并不是讨论的结束——这只是高等教育革命的开始, 在教师, 工作人员, students and community members will share in creating a more equitable, diverse and thriving institution that is committed to strengthening society.