Monday marked the one-year anniversary since the founding of the SGA Diversity and Inclusion Committee (D&I). Chaired by Junior Senator Nasir Montalvo, the committee aims to “empower and involve those who are different from the majority population at Stevens.”
D&I was created last year to rally student support for the creation of an Intercultural Center (ICC). Similar to the Lore-El Center for Women’s Programs, which the SGA Proclamation cites as “just the beginning of supporting students of underrepresented backgrounds,” the vision for an Intercultural Center at Stevens was that it would provide a “variety of resources for students who are underrepresented at Stevens… [allow for] programming by Diversity Education and identity-based organizations… [and] would create a space for dialogue on the topics of diversity, inclusion, and intersectionality on campus.”
The Fight for an Intercultural Center
Early conversations regarding the push for diversity and inclusion at Stevens began in October 2018 due to a campaign on the Stevens Students Instagram page encouraging minority students to vote. Montalvo, in response, sent an email to the Office of Student Life and the Office of Student Affairs regarding the issue and tagged several student organizations whose purposes were related to cultural diversity.
After this email was received, Montalvo entered into conversations with Sara Klein, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs, regarding the lack of resources for underrepresented minorities on campus. Montalvo said an ICC was originally Klein’s idea, but in order to present it to President Nariman Farvardin and his cabinet, she needed evidence that there was student interest and support for such resources on campus.
Montalvo took it upon himself to lead efforts in gathering interest and feedback regarding the creation of an ICC in the University Towers, which were coordinated using a survey. “It was really hard to get responses in the beginning,” said Montalvo, “it was a month and we barely reached a hundred […] I didn’t know how much data we needed until January when I was told we needed to get a third of the student body to support us.” After table sitting at large campus events such as Midnight Breakfast, presenting to different organizations and student groups, and going door-to-door to collect support and feedback regarding the initiative, D&I collected nearly 900 responses and was able to write and submit a 25-page Proclamation titled “A Case and Justification on the Creation of an Intercultural Center” by President’s Day Weekend. Perhaps the most resounding part: survey results showed that almost 94% of respondents were in favor of the creation of the ICC.
The journey of collecting signatures was not an easy feat. Montalvo recalls: “while there was a lot of support [for the center], some of the comments made on the survey were pretty harmful […] we’re students at the end of the day, we saw the data and [saw] who wrote nasty comments. It took a really big toll on my mental health, but I had to [read through the results].”
Reception from Administrators
Around March, members of D&I and SGA President Jason Chlus met with Klein and Marybeth Murphy, Vice President for Enrollment Management & Student Affairs, to discuss the Proclamation. “A good 20 to 30 minutes were spent discussing the prayer space, and the conversation did imply that they were trying to do something about the issue.” After this meeting, Montalvo said he didn’t hear much regarding the progress of the center until the end of the semester when he was notified by Klein that the ICC was confirmed for the University Towers.
Also last spring, D&I was awarded with “Advocacy Program of the Year” at the Student Leadership Awards Brunch, acknowledging D&I’s efforts for the Intercultural Center and increasing awareness related to inclusion at Stevens. Additionally, it was announced to Peer Leaders (PLs) and Resident Assistants (RAs) during their training this past August that a center was coming.
Although there has not been an official announcement to all students yet regarding the center and interim space, admins have confirmed that an intercultural space will exist in the Student Center, formally known as Alexander House, once it opens in December. Plans for an Intercultural Space were not in the original blueprints for the Student Center, but Sara Klein, Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs, told The Stute in September that when she received a proposal for an intercultural space, “we felt that the creation of an Intercultural Space should not have to wait three years until the University Center opened.” The Intercultural Space will replace a small lounge on the first floor of the Student Center.
A New Diversity Educator
When Jacquis Watters, former Diversity Educator, left Stevens in September of 2018, it took several months for the Office of Student Life to fill the role. Liliana Delman, the current Assistant Director for Diversity Education, came to Stevens in March of this year. Arguably, the largest strides for D&I (specifically the formation of the committee and case for an Intercultural Center) took place during the gap when the Office of Student Life didn’t have any staff specializing in Diversity to support D&I.
Montalvo reflected on how life has changed after Delman’s arrival: “I thought it was interesting how much Stevens relies on student leaders. When she came into her position, she looked to D&I to determine the stuff that she needed to do with her position. It kinda felt strange to be the ones giving her direction on what to do, but that was when I was truly starting to understand how the SGA operates.” He stated that they actually meet weekly to discuss what’s going on on campus. “A lot of diversity work is reactionary, something happens on campus and we have to address it,” he explained. For example, next week D&I will be hosting an event around the topic of reproductive rights called “Change Our Minds” in response to a student opinion published in The Stute last week, which itself was a response to a Letter to the Editor reacting to a Newman Catholic/College Republicans event.
Montalvo also identified a new change that has happened since Delman came to Stevens. “Since she’s come in, a lot of people expressed that their heritage months were not given enough attention. Now, she creates a calendar for each identity that is being celebrated each month and it’s helped the culture on campus,” he said.
Overall, Montalvo was very enthusiastic about Delman. “She’s guided me, really been a mentor […] I don’t have a degree in sociology, but she’s taught me a lot in how to do the work I do. [D&I] wouldn’t have been as successful without her.” Additionally, Montalvo expressed great thanks to Graduate Coordinator for Diversity Education Veronika Paprocka, stating, “both of them have been incredibly helpful to me.”
Events and Initiatives
Besides the Intercultural Center, D&I has worked on a number of events and initiatives to get their name and mission out to the Stevens community. Two of these events were Luminaires, an event co-hosted with Amnesty International in support of refugees on campus, and Pride After Dark, one of the most co-hosted events in Stevens history, which featured performances from student groups and a drag queen.
During Luminaries, decorative lanterns were set up on Palmer Lawn in an arrangement that spelled, “We welcome refugees” along with a heart. Montalvo explained that Luminaries was the committee’s first time participating in an event. Regarding Pride After Dark, Montalvo stated, “Over 300 people attended […] Pride After Dark made me realize D&I was here to stay […] watching a drag queen at Stevens […] seeing everyone’s mouth drop […] it was so weird but it was so cool, everyone received her so well […] it definitely helped reduce the stigma of the queer community on campus.”
Another difference between D&I and a club is that rather than an executive board, they have “advocate” positions for different sectors within the scope of diversity and inclusion. “Of course we cannot cover every single one,” explained Montalvo, but each of the advocates “pursue their own initiatives within their sector.”
Currently, Adrian Castellanos, the Sexuality Advocate for D&I, is working on getting Stevens on the Campus Pride index and has been in meetings with Delman in order to, at the very least, get rated privately, so that Stevens can identify its LGBTQ+ friendliness and continue to improve from there. The Accessibility Advocate Hava Mamudi has been working on initiatives related to American Sign Language (ASL) and promoting deaf culture on campus. “They work a lot with the Office of Disability Services,” explained Montalvo, “a lot of students don’t realize how different the college experience is to those who use sign [language].”
What’s Next for D&I?
As stated previously, D&I will be having an event next week related to reproductive rights called “Change Our Minds.” The event will feature informative booths with displays and activities covering topics such as family planning, STD/STI testing, censorship, and LGBTQ+ reproductive rights from several co-sponsoring student organizations. For the entire week prior to the event, D&I will also be fundraising for Hoboken Family Planning.
Additionally, Montalvo is working on an initiative to increase awareness related to reporting bias on campus. “When you report a concern to Stevens, a bias report concerns any incident that has occurred on campus that has to do with the realm of diversity and inclusion.” Some of the examples Montalvo provided were being called a slur or being profiled on campus. This initiative is particularly important because “they’re going to give those who work in the realm of equity work here more data to work with,” explained Montalvo. “In turn, [we’ll] be able to use this data to say we need these mandatory trainings, or we need to expand the ICC,” he said.
Furthermore, starting next Spring, each advocate will be hosting workshops related to their identity sector. Currently besides the Sexuality and Accessibility advocates, D&I also has Religious Advocate Mohkum Singh Sethi, Socioeconomics Status Advocate Christina Puntiel, Gender Advocate Amir Mustafa, and Deputy Assistant Eden Luvishis. They also had a Race & Ethnicity Advocate, but the position is currently vacant.
“It has been really heartwarming to see how all the Advocates have grown and taken their shape within the Committee. We have been figuring this out as we go and all of them being so flexible and open has made us a success. I view us as a big family, and I could not have gotten this far without their help,” said Montalvo.
Those interested in learning more about the SGA’s D&I committee should reach out to Montalvo directly. As usual, all students are permitted to attend the SGA’s weekly Senate meetings which take place on Sundays at 7 p.m. in BC 122, as well as join the SGA Slack workspace, which D&I is a part of. D&I’s next event, Change Our Minds, will be held on November 20 at 9 p.m. in Babbio Atrium.
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