DEI CHAIRMAN STORIES

STRATEGIC GOAL AREA EXEMPLIFY

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion WRITTEN BY: LEXI MOORE, EPSILON PHI, PROGRAM COORDINATOR Chairman In the fall of 2020, Alpha Sigma Alpha introduced a new officer position to our collegiate chapters. The diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) chairman works to educate members on the importance of supporting the development of a diverse and inclusive organization, campus and community. Through their work, the DEI chairman helps provide their chapter with programming and opportunities that increase members’ knowledge and awareness of differences in backgrounds, experiences and worldviews.

Meet some of the collegiate women who continue to propel their chapters and our Sorority forward through their work in DEI.

Riana Mays, Tau

Tau, Senior at Fort Hays State University

What motivated you to run for the DEI chairman position? “I grew up in a very small town in Kansas where I was the only minority. Many of my sisters also grew up in rural areas where there were little to no minorities. I wanted to help educate my sisters and I felt I could provide this education based on my lived experiences as a bisexual, black woman."

What has been the most rewarding aspect of this role so far? “The most rewarding part of this role for me personally has been helping educate my sisters on a part of life that most of them have never experienced before. Additionally, it has been rewarding not only to help educate my sisters, but also learn from the research myself. I’ve been able to teach my sisters about history of different minority groups and I have seen a lot of members begin to openly stand as an ally for the LGBTQ+ community and for Black Lives Matter.” Addison Price, Zeta Gamma,

Junior at Gannon University

What motivated you to run for the DEI chairman position? “when the DEI chairman became a position within my chapter, I had only been in for a semester. My president encouraged me to run, knowing how well it aligned with my interests. I wanted to make DEI a bigger part of the chapter, giving it a focus on providing education and resources to my sisters."

Tell me about a program that the chapter was able to participate in during the last year. “I was able to attend the implicit bias virtual keynote by Dr. Nwoke this year. The entire chapter could not be present, however, I took this information and created an uncomplicated and straightforward presentation to talk about with the chapter. we were able to take what we had learned then, go through recruitment with a more sensitive and aware outlook. I think it helped not only my sisters, but myself as well, learn about how we need to consciously and actively reduce stereotypes.” Angela Lerma, Iota Kappa,

Senior at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College

Tell me about a program that the chapter was able to participate in during the last year. “Our chapter was able to participate with Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences and IMPACT (organization in Interclub Council) in hosting an International Awareness event on International Day. On April 14th, we held an event on campus in our cafeteria where we had many different items from all over the world for students to see before entering the Dining Hall. The entrance was set up to be more of a museum and we had our campus cooking staff prepare food from different countries. working together to put up the different flags, taking care of the art and artifacts not only was it able to bring the three different organizations together but also educate our sisters on the variety of different cultures and countries. I honestly didn’t know how many international students we had attending our school until we held this event. I hope we can continue to hold this event every year in the future.”

What motivated you to run for the DEI chairman position? “The motivation for me to run for the DEI chairman position in my chapter was so I can welcome many new sisters who might feel a little uneasy about the whole process due to what the world views a sorority as. Having a diverse chapter isn’t just about the way you look, it’s also about the different types of women you recruit and how comfortable they are in the chapter.”

Tell me about a program that the chapter was able to participate in during the last year. “Due to my chapter being a new chapter we weren’t able to participate in anything last year, but we do have several events coming up in the Fall Semester that talk about women in Leadership. we are having a panel of different women coming to talk to us about their experiences in their sororities with being a minority. I can’t wait to educate my sisters and hopefully future sisters about these topics!”

Hanan Stiff, Beta Nu, Sophomore at

Murray State University

What motivated you to run for the DEI chairman position? “My life and personal upbringing were the instant motivations to run for this chairman position. Growing up in a military home, I was constantly having to evolve in new surroundings. Being born in a different country, being a racial minority in my public Hawaiian school, and having the opportunity to be exposed to such unique cultures taught me how to embrace diversity and advocate for the inclusion of all people. My home, and many “hometowns,” are defined by the diverse people who made me feel welcome. That sense of community and belonging is something that I wanted to be represented at my university, and I knew that a first step to accomplishing that was applying for this position.”

Tell me about a program that the chapter was able to participate in during the last year. “My chapter had the opportunity to attend Dr. Leslie Nwoke’s virtual keynote session on “How to Face what (or who) Scares You: A Conversation on Bias.” Learning and further discussing the unconscious bias that is present in many peoples’ lives, including our own, was something that my chapter needed. Dr. Nwoke’s ability to explain the barriers that build up because of this prejudice allowed for my chapter, and others, to have more candid conversations about the injustices present today.” What motivated you to run for the DEI chairman position? “I'm a queer Mexican American Jew, so for me being able to help my chapter navigate matters of diversity and inclusion was a topic close to home. I felt that my chapter was filled with sisters who cared for so many, but didn't know how to access the information. Often times, starting is the hardest part."

What has been the most rewarding aspect of this role so far? “My chapter is a diverse one, and so seeing sisters begin to open up about their own experiences and genuinely take interest in how we can all grow and be better for those who we love and wish to see in equality was a really amazing thing. Sisters took initiative and even during hard times wanted to participate. There was a lot of great participation and discussion on how we continue to learn and grow together despite challenges faced due to the pandemic.”

Jasmine Wallace, Theta Chi,

Junior at Methodist University

What motivated you to run for the DEI chairman position? “Interestingly enough, I was actually meeting with my chapter’s president about leaving the organization when I first heard about the DEI chairman position. I was frustrated with how things were run and felt overlooked within my chapter, but hearing about this new position that is all about equity and making diverse voices heard made me reconsider. Bringing ideas and realities from different backgrounds and making them more known and understood to the majority is so important to me, especially after the realities so many minorities face were made public during the summer of 2020. when I heard that my own sorority had the initiative of creating a position to help keep the movement going, I was so excited. This new position, to me, felt like the perfect way for me to fit into my sorority, like I could make a real change within the campus organization. It was also very appealing to me that I could be the first person within my chapter to hold this brand new chairman position, and that I could help shape the way it is run and the impact it has within the chapter.”