By Annie Rochon
For diversity and inclusion to be successful in a higher-ed environment, you need to have leadership and people passionate about spreading the message that diversity and inclusion should be celebrated.
In 2016, Sarah Hart and other faculty members joined forces to create the Cultural Diversity and Inclusion Council. Our mission statement is as follows: “The Cultural Diversity and Inclusion Council will work for the promotion and celebration of cultural diversity within our community and to create a thriving, inclusive community.”
The CDIC welcomes all your ideas, suggestions and inputs. We invite you to attend our first “Smitty Talk” of the semester on March 1st, 2017, at 5:30 p.m. in the Pine room. Athletes who participated in the 2017 World Snowshoe Championship will share their experience on the multicultural aspect of the snowshoe race and the relationships that developed because of the participants around the world. Hope to see many of you join our Smitty athletes.
Stay tuned for more updates and upcoming events sponsored by the CDIC.
“We are all different, which is great because we are all unique. Without diversity life would be very boring.” —Catherine Pulsifer
Annie Rochon is an Assistant Professor of Classical and Modern Languages at Paul Smith’s College. She grew up speaking French in Montreal, Quebec, and, coming from a multicultural background, she is a strong advocate for diversity. She has a passion for language and for sharing it. She has a background in ethnolinguistics, translations, interpretation and terminology. She ardently believes that languages, travels, cultures and the beauty of cuisine will forever be intertwined.