 Colgate means community to many of us. It is instantly clear to visitors how strongly we value our community. When we value something, it makes good sense to invest in its growth. With the release of the 2009 Colgate Campus Life Survey and ongoing efforts to enhance our diversity initiatives, we are at an exciting time to take a closer look at ourselves, how we interact with each other, and take advantage of the many opportunities to reinvest in our community further. What gets in the way of building community? Many of us are afraid of making mistakes and offending others. Often we don’t know exactly what to do to connect with people who are different from us. Many training workshops aimed at building our understanding of diversity and our skills to work with others also cause us to feel guilty about our past mistakes and current difficulties. We may leave the workshop feeling ashamed, angry, or helpless. Wouldn’t it be great to reduce prejudice in an environment that is hopeful, non-blameful, constructive and provides some concrete skills? A group of students, faculty, and staff at Colgate have found another approach, the National Coalition Building Institute (NCBI). As an international training organization, NCBI works to eliminate prejudice and discrimination group by group. Colgate University has a recognized NCBI chapter with trained facilitators ready to conduct workshops and serve as resources to the campus on diversity-related issues. |