Speakers Emma E. Houston Using Your Voice: We Must Overcome ‘Us vs. Them’ Thinking to Support Marginalized Groups Emma E. Houston is the Special Assistant to the VP of EDI-Engagement and Program Development at the University of Utah. Her work is designed to create inclusive spaces that celebrate, acknowledge, embrace, and understand the overachieving umbrella of diversity, inclusion, and equity. Emma was appointed by Governor Herbert as the chair of the Utah MLK Jr. Human Rights Commission and serves on the state’s COVID-19 Task Force. She is also the owner and CEO of Brighter Day Productions, LLC.
Dr. William A. Smith It’s Beyond Time: Look, Listen, and Learn Dr. William A. Smith is a full Professor and Department Chair in the Department of Education, Culture, and Society at the University of Utah. He also holds a joint appointment in the Ethnic Studies Program (African American Studies division) as a full professor. His research primarily focuses on his theoretical contribution of Racial Battle Fatigue, which is the cumulative emotional, psychological, physiological, and behavioral effects that racial micro-level aggressions and macro-level aggressions (microaggressions and macroaggressions) have on People of Color.
Dr. Mary Ann Villarreal More Than a Body Count: Diversity Without Equity and Inclusion is Dead Dr. Mary Ann Villarreal is the inaugural Vice President for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at the University of Utah, where she provides leadership and strategic oversight of diversity and inclusion initiatives across the University’s academic and health sciences campuses. Villarreal aims to foster a shared commitment to a cultural transformation in practice, policy, and processes at the U and in higher education. She also serves on the Association of American Colleges and Universities’ Board of Directors and the executive committee of the Association of Public Land-Grant Universities’ Commission on Access, Diversity, and Excellence.
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