Fostering an Inclusive Campus Climate
Excitement building over second Day of Collective Action
On the second annual Day of Collective Action, the U encourages everyone to get involved.
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion • January 31, 2023
“It’s going to be another banner day for the University of Utah,” says David Hawkins-Jacinto, sr. communications manager for Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion.
As co-chair of the Day of Collective Action, Hawkins-Jacinto is excited for the second annual university-wide event on Wednesday, February 8, a day that will bring together experts from across campus—and even across the country. Just like the first Day of Collective Action, this year’s event promises to give attendees lots of useful information on actions we can all take to strengthen our communities.
As Utah Governor, Spencer Cox recently noted, Utahans lead the country in getting involved to support their communities, and it’s this same spirit of engagement and helping that launched the Day of Collective Action last year. It’s also why Hawkins-Jacinto encourages everyone to attend this year’s event—to find new ways to get involved.
“Last year was our first Day of Collective Action and we were responding to threats against our Black Cultural Center—so we wanted to get the campus involved to learn more about what we all could do,” says Lori McDonald, vice president for Student Affairs. That community-focused spirit is why President Taylor Randall made the Day of Collective Action (DoCA) a campus-wide Presidential Initiative.
The Day is overseen by the Presidential Commission on Equity & Belonging (PCEB), co-chaired by VP McDonald and Mary Ann Villarreal, vice president for Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion (EDI). “We’re building on some of last year’s momentum,” says Villarreal, “but we’re also adding a bit more and encouraging everyone to get involved—and get active.”
Bryan Hubain, associate vice president of Student Development & Inclusion and co-chair of the Day of Collective Action committee explains the focus of this year’s event. “We’ve organized our efforts around four key areas—antiracism, indigenizing the university, exploring Hispanic Serving Institutions, and community and coalition building. Last year was such a great first step—but this year we wanted to bring new energy and focus where we could.”
This year’s presidential session, scheduled to take place in Bill & Pat Child Family Community Hall at the Spencer Fox Eccles Business Building, will feature the keynote by Dr. Anne Marie Nuñez, the director of the Natalicio Institute for Hispanic Student Success at the University of Texas, El Paso. The session will examine the function of Hispanic Serving Institutions (also known as HSIs) and the growing role they are playing in higher education.
Other events include sessions on building antiracism plans, addressing the challenges of student poverty, and understanding the ways gender interacts with campus life and the classroom. And like last year, many events this year are designed to help attendees learn new skills that they can put into action in their own lives, workplaces, or classrooms.
To learn more about the Day of Collective Action, register for events, and get involved, please visit the Day of Collective Action website.