Students walk on campus by the Talley Student Union. Photo by Marc Hall

Each semester, the Office for Institutional Equity and Diversity hosts a campus dialogue on diversity. The fall dialogue is hosted during the university’s annual Diversity Education Week.  These events serve to promote awareness and understanding of our nation and world’s diverse cultures and foster intercultural understanding through a collection of engaging opportunities. All dialogues are open to all students, faculty and staff.

Cultural competency among 21st-century graduates has become imperative as the job market globalizes and the workforce continues to diversify. We are all neighbors now. Through the internet and social media, we can reach four billion other people for both work and play. This offers unprecedented chances for both meaningful engagements as well as free expression. Campus dialogues serve to advance learning and scholarship in this area while building understanding and respect among different people and enhancing constructive leadership in the local and global communities.

 “There is one race of people and that is the human race in which we are all apart. The uniqueness lies in each of our own identities due to the many differences, complexities and similarities. It’s how we live our daily lives, all the way from our perceptions to the decisions we make.” – NC State undergraduate student, Spring 2016

“The idea of how we see ourselves in respect to our society is important and can be difficult to discuss because race is not a common topic in our daily lives. It makes some people uncomfortable. I discovered with this assignment that people with different upbringings have completely different perspectives on the topic and some value the importance of history differently.” — NC State undergraduate student, Spring 2016

Everyone has a race. For many white people, talking about race is uncomfortable. For people of color, it’s unavoidable. The spring campus diversity dialogue will feature the short film, White People, A Documentary, by Pulitzer-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas. This new documentary from MTV asks white millennials to take a closer look at how they view race. “I don’t think we can have a conversation about race in America anymore and not include white people in the conversation,” said journalist Jose Antonio Vargas.

• How can we have conversations about race that are both welcoming and honest?
• What are your most meaningful conversations about race and who were they with?
• What circumstances fostered them and what did you learn?

All students, faculty and staff are invited to join the viewing of this short film and interactive discussion to share your thoughts, experiences and opinions as well as build skills for effective dialogue on issues of race. This event is free and open to the public.

Monday, February 29, 2016
3:00-5:00 p.m.
Campus Cinema, Witherspoon Student Center

See the website for complete details on the Spring Campus Diversity Dialogue and to download the event flyer.

Please contact Assistant Vice Provost for Student Diversity Dr. Tracey Ray with questions.