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Come meet new people, make conversation, and help us build a better LGBTQIA+ community! Queers And Beers meets the third Friday of every month. Visit our Facebook page to see the location each month. Allies are encouraged to attend! As always, beers are optional.

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Diversity and Inclusion upcoming events. Diversity is happening at Minnesota State University Mankato.

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Email us at jessica.albers@mnsu.edu

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The Maverick Diversity Institute offers challenging and unique workshops and programs that will help you to become knowledgeable on inclusivity, access, and equity in your workplace and classroom environment. Participate in four (4) session and get a Linkedin badge! Studens who participate in four (4) sessions get a Linkedin badge and a Maverick Diversity Institute sweatshirt!

All questions about the Maverick Diversity Institute should be directed to Liz Steinborn-Gourley at elizabeth.steinborn-gourley@mnsu.edu or the Maverick Diversity Institute email at diversityinstitute@mnsu.edu.

Spring 2022 MDI Events
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THE SPRING 2022 MDI SESSIONS.
Equity In Strategic Planning with Amy Moreno-Sherwood

Join Amy for example of centering equity in strategic planning.

Addressing the Opportunity Gap with Dr. Henry Morris and Dr. Laura Jacobi

Microaggressions And Intersectionality with Student Body President Reauna Stiff, Prof. Dani Scott, Pakou Lee, Shadow Rolan, and Idman Ibrahim

Join students Reauna Stiff and Idman Ibrahim, with Professor Dani Scott, and Asian American Affairs Director Pakou Lee, and Violence Awareness and Response Program Director Shadow Rolan for a panel discussion on the reality of microaggressions on our campus and how intersectionality amplifies these challenges for women of color.

Chancellor's Fellows, Dr. Crapo Kim and Dr. Ajay Panicker, Present for Equity 2030

Chancellor's Fellows Dr. Ruthanne Crapo Kim and Dr. Ajay Panicker, will present their research for Equity 2030 and emphasize the importance of making academia more equitable. They will also discuss culturally responsive teaching practices.

Pain. Power. Honor. Does it Hurt Enough to Change? Antiracism and Universal Design with Andratesha Fritzgerald Featured as part of the 46th Annual Dr. Michael T Fagin Pan-African Conference

Author of "Antiracism and Universal Design for Learning" Andratesha Fritzgerald will be a featured speaker of the 2022 Pan African Conference. Register for the whole conference or just for Andratesha's presentation. Copies of her book will be on sale at the event.

Intersectional Accessibility in STEM with Dr. Lisette Torres-Gerald

Dr. Lisette Torres-Gerald is widely published on the topic if disability and STEM. Join her to learn more about intersectional accessibility in STEM.

Hayden Kristal and the Importance of Intersectional Activism (sponsored by the LGBT Center)

https://www.mnsu.edu/university-life/diversity-and-inclusion/dish-events/hayden-kristal--the-importance-of-intersectional-activism/

Hayden Kristal (preferred pronouns they/them/theirs, but accepts anything said with good intent) is a Deaf, bisexual, Jewish, queer activist and stand-up comedian. This keynote, which is taking place in CSU 253/54/55 or via Zoom, explores what it means to live life at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities and why acknowledging the complex and multifaceted nature of human identity is critical to any kind of social justice work. In the realm of speaking and activism, Hayden has been a TEDx Presenter, a Catalyst Award winner, and a Lavender Graduation commencement speaker; comedically, Hayden was a semifinalist for Stand Up NBC, a finalist for Full Frontal with Samantha Bee's Comedy Writing Mentorship, a featured performer at Limestone Comedy festival, and has opened and featured for Maria Bamford.

Microaggressions: Words Have Impact with Dr. Timothy Berry, Dr. Chris Brown, and Kenneth Reid

Join Dr. Timothy Berry, Dr. Chris Brown, and Kenneth Reid for a conversation about the impact of microaggressions on our students and the ways we can address our own microaggressive ways and call in our colleagues and peers who do the same.

Violence Free Zone Training with Shadow Rolan

Join Shadow Rolan, interim Director of the Violence Awareness and Response Program to learn more about the pervasiveness of domestic and sexual violence and how we can create a community dedicated to ending violence.

Anti-Racist Pedagogy with Dr. Bernadeia Johnson

Dr. Bernadeia Johnson has been a career-long educator. Join her to explore how to develop your own antiracist pedagogy.

Cross Cultural Customer Service with Alissa Morson and Blake Litzau

Alissa Morson and Blake Litzau from the Kearney International Center will provide information about ways we can honor the culture of the students we serve.

Other great educational opportunities:

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The Maverick Diversity Institute offers challenging and unique workshops and programs that will help you to become knowledgeable on inclusivity, access, and equity in your workplace and classroom environment. Participate in four (4) session and get a Linkedin badge! Studens who participate in four (4) sessions get a Linkedin badge and a Maverick Diversity Institute sweatshirt!

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JOIN US TODAY

The deep-seated systemic racism and inequities that disadvantage communities of color are still woven into the fabric of our institutions today-from civic engagement to economic development, from education to healthcare, and even the way people of color are portrayed in the media. We must work collectively to root out inequity in our communities and in the institutions that compose our society, and demand justice and equity.

That's why, YWCA Mankato, along with YWCA affiliates across the United States, will provide folks the opportunity to dedicate 21 days to the pursuit of racial justice. This year's theme merges five focus areas that will guide and inform our racial equity work. These focus areas include civic engagement, economic opportunity and security, education, health care, and representation in media.

Scroll down to sign up!

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Stand Against Racism 21 Day Challenge | YWCA Mankato

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YWCA Mankato 21-Day Challenge April 4th-May 2nd, 2022 Join us during this year's Stand Against Racism campaign as we bring awareness to racism within our communities and connect with other partners and allies to build pathways toward racial equity and justice. We plan to do this through a 21-Day ...

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Trauma Across Generations: The Impact of Historical Trauma on Healthcare

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Trauma Across Generations: The Impact of Historical Trauma on Healthcare

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Join Samuel Simmons for a conversation on diversity within healthcare.

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Monday, November 22, 2021
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
CSU Ostrander Auditorium

Film showing of "What Was Ours"

Like millions of indigenous people, many Native American tribes do not control their own material history and culture. For the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes living on the isolated Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming, new contact with lost artifacts risks opening old wounds but also offers the possibility for healing. What Was Ours is the story of how a young journalist and a teenage powwow princess, both of the Arapaho tribe, traveled together with a Shoshone elder in search of missing artifacts in the vast archives of Chicago's Field Museum. There they discover a treasure trove of ancestral objects, setting them on a journey to recover what has been lost and build hope for the future.

When Jordan Dresser returned to Wind River after graduating from college, he began working at the casino on the reservation. He was excited when the casino expressed interest in establishing a museum on the premises to tell the stories of the Shoshone and Arapaho, but was surprised to learn the tribes no longer had possession of many of their own artifacts. These objects - drums, pipes, eagle wing fans, medicine bags, weapons, and ceremonial attire - were sold off decades ago and taken far from home, only to be kept in storage, their sacred meanings slowly being lost to time. Most were located in museum collections around the country. Both Jordan and Mikala SunRhodes, a Shoshone high school student interested in her cultural history, wondered, could Wind River get them back?

They pair up with Philbert McLeod, a Shoshone elder and American military veteran whose last trip off the reservation was when he left to fight in Vietnam, where he nearly died. Philbert believes an old beaded charm passed down by an elder helped him survive combat. Reluctant to make the trip at first, he decides to travel with Jordan and Mikala because he and other elders want Wind River's young people to know who they are and be inspired to bring the artifacts home. But ultimately it may be a local church that holds in its hands the fate of Wind River's sacred objects and tribal dreams of a museum of their own.

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Film showing of "What Was Ours" Like millions of indigenous people, many Native American tribes do not control their own material history and culture. For the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes living on the isolated Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming, new contact with lost artifacts risks opening old wounds but also offers the possibility for healing.

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Topix and Chill - Discuss the AAPI experience 

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Topix and Chill - Discuss the AAPI experience 

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Monday, November 15, 2021
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
CSU Ballroom, https://tinyurl.com/ainmnsu

We are proud to host three incredible Indigenous women for a discussion about sustainability and environmental reciprocity: Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass, Dr. Rhonda Dass, professor of Indigenous American Studies, and Megan Schnitker, director of the Mahkato Revitalization Project and and owner of Lakota Made.
Featuring a drum troupe and dancers.
Tickets are available from megan.heutmaker@mnsu.edu to join us in the ballroom.
Zoom in if you can't make it in person and register here: https://tinyurl.com/ainmnsu

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American Indian Night: Learning from Indigenous Women: Plant Knowledge

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We are proud to host three incredible Indigenous women for a discussion about sustainability and environmental reciprocity: Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass, Dr. Rhonda Dass, professor of Indigenous American Studies, and Megan Schnitker, director of the Mahkato Revitalization Project and and owner of Lakota Made.Featuring a drum troupe and dancers.Tickets are available from megan.heutmaker@mnsu.edu to join us in the ballroom.Zoom in if you can't make it in person and register here: https://tinyurl.com/ainmnsu

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Receive a $10 CSU Food Voucher. Register ASAP!

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The Greater Mankato Diversity Council (GMDC) exists to enhance the Mankato area's commitment to creating an inclusive and welcoming community through diversity education. Our mission is to provide diversity education as a catalyst for social and economic success. GMDC strives to give people an understanding of diversity and build their cultural competence through Promoting Respect Workshops, multi-cultural activities, diversity events and more.
GMDC's mission is providing diversity education as a catalyst for social and economic success. Three supporting statements focus our mission work within our community. Those three supporting statements are: Global - Preparing our communities for increased global presence and awareness.; Inclusive - Creating an open and safe learning environment in our schools for all students.; Vibrant - Partnering with businesses and industry to create workforce that ensures a healthy economy.

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The Greater Mankato Diversity Council (GMDC) exists to enhance the Mankato area's commitment to creating an inclusive and welcoming community through diversity education. Our mission is to provide diversity education as a catalyst for social and economic success.

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Attend 4 events a semester, write and reflection, and earn a Diversity Institute Certificate.
https://www.mnsu.edu/cultdiv/diversity.html

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Mankato Area International Festival 2020

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Art event in Mankato, MN by Kearney Center for International Student Services, Minnesota State Mankato on Sunday, April 19 2020 with 221 people...

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Accommodations and Equal Access

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Resources for Online and Alternative Instruction

We have assembled some helpful resources to assist in promoting accessibility in online classes, and upholding accommodations for students with disabilities. Students, Faculty and Staff will Find these helpful.
Resources for Students Resources for Faculty and Staff
As always, our staff are happy to help to ensure classes are accessible to students with disabilties. Feel free to reach out to us at any time.

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Accessibility Resources, Support for Students with Disabilities

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We have assembled some helpful resources to assist in promoting accessibility in online classes, and upholding accommodations for students with disabilities. Students, Faculty and Staff will Find these helpful. Resources for Students Resources for Faculty and Staff As always, our staff are happy to help to ensure classes are accessible to students with disabilties.

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Volunteer as a coach for the Girls on the Run programs

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Volunteer as a coach for the Girls on the Run programs

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Positive youth development running program for girls

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At Girls on the Run we inspire girls to recognize their inner strength and celebrate what makes them one of a kind. Trained coaches lead small teams through our research-based curricula which includes dynamic discussions, activities and running games. Over the course of the ten-week program, girls develop essential skills to help them navigate their worlds and establish a lifetime appreciation for health and fitness. The program culminates with girls positively impacting their communities through a service project and being physically and emotionally prepared to complete a celebratory 5k event. .

Girls face social pressures and conflicting messages about how they should act and who they should be. Studies show that by adolescence, girls' confidence drops about twice as much as boys'. Friendships become more complicated and challenging, girls' perception of their academic ability declines, the likelihood of anxiety and depression increases and participation in physical activity plummets.

It doesn't have to be this way.

We believe that every girl is inherently full of power and potential. By knowing they are the leaders of their lives, these are the girls who will change the world.

What Girls Learn

Confidence - Lessons are designed to build girls' self-worth and help them feel greater confidence in who they are. Activities help girls recognize their personal strengths and teach them how to stand up for themselves and others.

Character - By gaining awareness of the power they possess to make intentional decisions, girls learn to choose positive actions which demonstrate respect and responsibility towards themselves and others.

Care - Throughout each season, girls learn to respond to others and themselves with care and compassion. Lessons and activities further develop their abilities to sympathize and empathize both within and beyond their social groups.

Connections - Girls on the Run lessons focus on cooperative skills and team building through a positive group setting. Girls learn firsthand how to create positive connections with parents and caregivers, teachers, peers and their communities.

Competence - Our program provides skill-building experiences to nurture girls' physical, social and emotional competencies that they apply in other areas of their lives such as home, school, and in the neighborhood. Completing a 5k at the end of the season gives them a tangible opportunity to apply all that they have learned.

Contribution - When girls develop and strengthen these life skills, they can thrive. More importantly, they can then develop a final skill: CONTRIBUTION. Girls on the Run inspires girls to build lives of purpose and to make a meaningful contribution to community and society. This comes to life through a key element of the curricula when each team creates and executes a community service project.

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At Girls on the Run we inspire girls to recognize their inner strength and celebrate what makes them one of a kind. Trained coaches lead small teams through our research-based curricula which includes dynamic discussions, activities and running games.

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Positive youth development running program for boys

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STRIDE is an interactive after school program that provides lessons on leadership, character development, healthy choices, goal-setting and cooperation, all within the framework of a fun fitness & a running plan. Participants (boys in 3rd-8th grades) will have lessons twice per week for 10 weeks, and complete the program by running in a 5K event.
The Mankato Family YMCA is currently seeking a Head Coach on either Monday's & Wednesdays and/or Tuesday's & Thursday's. The time commitment is from 2:00pm - 5:00pm each day scheduled. POSITION SUMMARY: The next STRIDE season begins in September 16th, 2019. The end of the season 5k is on Saturday, November 16th, 2019 and is required for every coach to attend. ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: Any and all interested and qualified candidates are encouraged to apply. QUALIFICATIONS:
The Head Coach works with one or more volunteer coaches to facilitate the STRIDE curriculum to program participants.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

1. Preparing, organizing, delivering and supervising weekly lessons. Assign some weekly activities to volunteer coaches and assist them in delivery.

2. Leading interactive program that provides lessons on leadership, character development, healthy choices, goal-setting, and cooperation. Framework revolves around physical fitness and a running plan.

3. Serving as a role model and mentor volunteer coaches and program participants.

4. Leading participants in proper stretching and running form, hydration and sports nutrition.

5. Interacting and communicating with parents of program participants and volunteer through face to face interaction and email.

6. Planning and coordinating the end of season party.

7. Attends and participates in the end of season 5K.

8. Direct volunteers as necessary under the direction of the Stride Director.

9. Other duties as assigned by Stride Director.

1. CPR, First Aid and AED certifications required within 60 days of employment (YMCA provided).

2. Prior experience working with and supervising youth.

3. Understanding and believe in the mission of STRIDE.

4. Excellent communication and organizational skills.

5. Friendly and outgoing personality.

6. The ability to be flexible and improvise when needed.

7. The ability to recognize and resolve conflict.

8. The capacity to work in a partnership with a co-coach and/or volunteer coaches.

9. Successfully pass a Background Check.

Sufficient strength, agility and mobility to perform essential functions and to supervise program activities in a wide variety of indoor and outdoor locations. Must be able to lead and participate in fitness related activities, including the 5k run at the end of the season.

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STRIDE is an interactive after school program that provides lessons on leadership, character development, healthy choices, goal-setting and cooperation, all within the framework of a fun fitness & a running plan. Participants (boys in 3rd-8th grades) will have lessons twice per week for 10 weeks, and complete the program by running in a 5K event.

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Minnesota State University, Mankato Mankato, MN 56001 1-800-722-0544

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http://www.mnsu.edu/lgbtc/

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Page address: http://www.mnsu.edu/wcenter/

Navigating a future can be challenging enough, let alone finding your place in all the energy and activity of life at Minnesota State Mankato. The Women's Center is a relaxing, friendly spot for students looking for anything from programs to a place to bring lunch and talk with cool people.

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Women's Center Home - Institutional Diversity - Minnesota State University, Mankato

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Page address: http://www.mnsu.edu/wcenter/ Navigating a future can be challenging enough, let alone finding your place in all the energy and activity of life at Minnesota State Mankato. The Women's Center is a relaxing, friendly spot for students looking for anything from programs to a place to bring lunch and talk with cool people.

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Mentoring for Student Success

The Village Mentoring Program equips students with essential tools necessary for success at Minnesota State University, Mankato. This program is structured to assist students of color in navigating their college experience from orientation through commencement.

The Village Mentoring Program is designed as an open environment where first- and second-year students of color can ask questions, seek guidance and become acquainted with the many resources available on campus. Individuals who register will receive a graduate assistant, faculty, or staff mentor, who can assist in the many adjustments to campus life and offer support throughout the individual's academic career.

What are possible roles in the Diversity and Inclusion Mentoring Program?

The Diversity and Inclusion mentoring program is a group of individuals who are committed to sharing the skills and knowledge that is necessary to be a successful student at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Interested individuals can participate in the program by registering as a:

Mentee - 1st or 2nd year students of color who have a desire in being supported throughout their academic career at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Mentor - Individuals who volunteer their time to share their knowledge, experiences, skills, and leadership abilities to help 1st and 2nd year students. These individuals are typically faculty, staff, or a graduate assistant.

What are the desired outcomes of the Diversity and Inclusion Mentoring Program?

The Village Mentoring Program strives to achieve the following outcomes:

Connect students with faculty, staff, and graduate assistants who intentionally mentor students towards academic excellence through academic advising, support, and encouragement.

Create an environment where students find affinity with one another as well as gain a sense of community.

Develop a stronger, more united community at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Educate students about campus resources and opportunities that will help them graduate and achieve personal success.

How do I sign up to become a Mentee?

For more information about becoming a mentee in the Diversity and Inclusion mentoring program, please click here.

How do I sign up to become Mentor?

If you would like to become a mentor, please click here.

For more information about The Village Mentoring Program, please contact Kenneth Reid, Director of the African American Affairs, at (507) 389 - 6207 or via email at Kenneth.Reid@mnsu.edu or Ann Swartz-Beckius, Director of Retention, at 507 (389) 1028 or via email at ann-marie.swartz-beckius@mnsu.edu.

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Mentoring for Student Success The Village Mentoring Program equips students with essential tools necessary for success at Minnesota State University, Mankato. This program is structured to assist students of color in navigating their college experience from orientation through commencement.

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As part of Institutional Diversity, the Center serves as a focal point for cross cultural programs and activities. It is a basic component of the cultural diversity retention effort where students can exchange, learn, and reinforce their cultural identity and existence cultural isolation and connect students from diverse backgrounds to the University.

Components and functions of the Center:

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As part of Institutional Diversity, the Center serves as a focal point for cross cultural programs and activities. It is a basic component of the cultural diversity retention effort where students can exchange, learn, and reinforce their cultural identity and existence cultural isolation and connect students from diverse backgrounds to the University.