March 18, 2016
DIAC — Continued from page 2 — After the conversation with Ashley was concluded, the smaller group discussions began. Some began by continuing the discussion of the Confederate flag, while others started by discussing issues they had with some of the current presidential candidates. Conversation flowed from there into larger issues of racism, history and culture. “I thought the conversations went very well, and a lot of issues pertinent to what’s been happening on campus were addressed and discussed in a productive manner,” said Jwuan RodriguezMurphy, a Potsdam sophomore and DIAC Steering Committee member who attended this first DIAC Community Conversation. Eventually, the full group convened once again and ended up in a captivating discussion about characters of color in comic books and other kinds of speculative fiction – a conversation about racism and culture, but also about specifically personal interests for several people who were there. “There’s an entire world of speculative fiction that isn’t based on western Eurocentric traditions of science and mythology that people should check out,” said Rodriguez-Murphy. “Some of us might already know an example of such if you’ve ever watched ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender.’”
Community As you can see, these DIAC Community Conversations are designed for you, giving you the freedom to tie whatever you would like into the conversation or bring up an entirely new topic. After all, you never know who might share your interests or what you can learn from simply talking to those around you. The next DIAC Community Conversation will be held on Monday, March 28 at 6 p.m. in Barrington Union MPR. Additionally, DIAC will also be hosting a Town Hall discussion on Monday, April 25, to inform the community about its progress this semester. All are welcome to attend these events, and doing so is a great chance to get informed and involved. In addition to Community Conversations, there are a number of other activities taking place on campus which give students the chance to expand our perspectives. One is Circles of Understanding, a.k.a the “Shoes Project,” a program organized by Dr. Phil Neisser, the associate dean of arts and sciences. It provides the opportunity for students to come together in small groups and have meaningful conversations about their experiences and standpoints when it comes to numerous issues. Faculty members Drs. Woods, Hinckley, Fryer, Conrad, Popovic, and Heuser act as moderators within the circles, but they do not dictate the conversation or tell others how to feel. Instead, they encourage students to be who they are and to speak and listen to each
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Katie Agar (left) and Jwuan Murphy-Rodriguez (right) play crucial roles in DIAC. Agar is a part of Marcus Wolf community outreach and Murphy-Rodriguez is a regular presenter at discussions.
other with respect. In an email, Neisser said that, “since the project began, nine Circle dialogues have taken place,” and that, “the number of students served is [close] to 73.” A fairly new program, Circles of Understanding has been growing and is only to gain momentum from here. To learn more or to join a Circle dialogue, email shoes@ potsdam.edu. Furthermore, Dr. Michael Popovic, a lecturer for the Politics Department, has been providing his classes with a unique opportunity to learn about the experiences of students from across the globe. For the past five semesters, his students have communicated with students in other countries through
facilitated video chats, similar to our everyday FaceTime or Skype calls. These virtual dialogues have allowed students on our campus to connect with students half a world away, expanding the perspectives of all who take part and teaching students things that they might not learn in the traditional classroom setting. The ultimate goal of Soliya, the organization providing this program, is “to achieve inclusive and tolerant teams and societies where diversity is embraced and conflicts are transformed into opportunities for collaboration and collective learning,” according to the group’s propsal of the virtual dialouges to Popovic. Soliya and SUNY Potsdam are working to
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expand their relationship even further, which would provide additional opportunities for students and faculty members to get involved with this amazing program. As students, these are all events that can benefit us and others in countless ways. I, myself, have participated in a few and I know people who have taken part in others and nobody ever has anything negative to say about their experiences. By taking part in programs such as these, we can increase our academic knowledge and communication skills, but most importantly, we are given the chance to meet people whose impact will stay with us for our entire lives.