Talking Stick - July/August 2013 - 17

their campuses, the reality is that more
programs could be offered in this area,
and evidence of the effectiveness of
these programs is rarely measured.

wHy Diversity anD
inClusion eDuCation
matters
The importance of diversity and inclusion training programs is described in
two documents familiar to housing and
residential life professionals. The 2012
ACUHO-I Core Competencies document recognizes the value of diversity
and globalization as a key component
in personal development, the value of
social justice in community development, and the value of cross-cultural
communication in conflict resolution.
Likewise, the 2010 ACUHO-I Standards
and Ethical Principles document calls
for practitioners to provide “educational programs that focus on awareness of
cultural differences, self-assessment of
possible prejudices, and desirable behavior changes” and to “assist underrepresented groups in understanding
their culture and its impact on multicultural issues and [to] promote majority student understanding of unique
cultures and heritages.”
However, it is difficult – and some
might argue impossible – for staff to
facilitate effective learning experiences
that meet the ACUHO-I standards and
ethical principles if facilitators do not
first explore and synthesize information
about their own identity and personal
biases and increase their competency
in diversity, multicultural issues, and
inclusive community development. This
exploration and self-assessment needs to
be done by all housing and residence life
staff, not just those with a passion for
the topic of diversity.

an integrateD approaCH
to Diversity anD
inClusion
Integrating staff training workshops
and programs on diversity and inclusion
into an already packed schedule is not
an either/or proposition. Consider

Resources for Designing Diversity and Inclusivity
Trainings
If reading about this four-step approach excites you, I encourage you to learn more from
the suggested readings list. Furthermore, I challenge readers to apply Fink’s model to
their educational efforts and write about their experiences in order to increase the body
of literature around this important topic.
~ Virginia Albaneso Koch

Published Resources:

Online Resources:

L. Dee Fink, Creating
Significant Learning
Experiences: An Integrated
Approach to Designing
College Courses (2003).

AIMHO, “Diversity and Social Justice Staff Training
Project” (2011). http://www.aimho.org/page/diversityand-social-justice-staff-training-project.

Brian C. Johnson, We’ve
Scene It All Before: Using Film
Clips in Diversity Awareness
Training (2009).
Richard P. Keeling (Ed.),
Learning Reconsidered 2:
Implementing a CampusWide Focus on the Student
Experience (2006).
Walter R. Olsen and William
A. Sommers, Energizing Staff
Development Using Film
Clips: Memorable Movie
Moments That Promote
Reflection, Conversation, and
Action (2005).
Grant Wiggins, Educative
Assessment: Designing
Assessments to Inform and
Improve Student Performance
(1998).

Association of American Colleges and Universities.
“Essential Learning Outcomes” (2013). www.aacu.org/
leap/vision.cfm.
Benjamin Bloom, “Bloom’s Taxonomy” (2013). http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloom%27s_Taxonomy.
EdChange, “Awareness Activities” (2012). http://
www.edchange.org/multicultural/activityarch.
html#strategies.
Empathic Perspectives, “Empathy in Diversity”
(2010). http://empathicperspectives.wordpress.
com/2010/08/16/empathy-in-diversity/.
L. Dee Fink, “A Self-Directed Guide to
Designing Courses for Significant Learning,”
http://www.deefinkandassociates.com/
GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf.
Virginia A. Koch, “An Exploration of Current
Practices in Curricular Design of Resident Assistant
Training Programs” (2012). http://gradworks.umi.
com/35/26/3526322.html.
Susan R. Komives, “An Update on Learning Outcomes
Focusing on the Council for the Advancement of
Standards in Higher Education (CAS)” (2010). http://
www.myacpa.org/pub/developments/index.php.
Magna Online Seminars, “How to Facilitate Social
Justice Exercises and Programs” (2013). http://www.
magnapubs.com/catalog/how-to-facilitate-socialjustice-exercises-and-programs/.

instead an integrated both/and
approach. Multicultural topics such as
intercultural communication, racism,
diversity, religious literacy, social justice,
and white privilege can be thoughtfully
integrated into safety and security topics
such as bullying, hate crimes and bias
incidents, and sexual harassment.
Rather than stringing together a series
of disjointed workshops or programs,
an integrated curricular approach
will help students and professional

staff comprehend how intolerance or
misunderstanding of the perspectives of
others may lead to less empathy, respect,
or concern for others: in short, less
inclusive communities.
The Integrated Course Design
(ICD) model promoted by L. Dee
Fink, author and expert in designing
significant learning experiences, enables
educators to create courses, workshops,
or programs with both process and
outcome dimensions. Applying ICD
July + August 2013

http://www.aimho.org/page/diversity-and-social-justice-staff-training-project http://www.aimho.org/page/diversity-and-social-justice-staff-training-project http://www.aacu.org/leap/vision.cfm http://www.aacu.org/leap/vision.cfm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloom%27s_Taxonomy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloom%27s_Taxonomy http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/activityarch.html#strategies http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/activityarch.html#strategies http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/activityarch.html#strategies http://empathicperspectives.wordpress.com/2010/08/16/empathy-in-diversity/ http://empathicperspectives.wordpress.com/2010/08/16/empathy-in-diversity/ http://www.deefinkandassociates.com/GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf http://www.deefinkandassociates.com/GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf http://gradworks.umi.com/35/26/3526322.html http://gradworks.umi.com/35/26/3526322.html http://www.myacpa.org/pub/developments/index.php http://www.myacpa.org/pub/developments/index.php http://www.magnapubs.com/catalog/how-to-facilitate-social-justice-exercises-and-programs/ http://www.magnapubs.com/catalog/how-to-facilitate-social-justice-exercises-and-programs/ http://www.magnapubs.com/catalog/how-to-facilitate-social-justice-exercises-and-programs/

Talking Stick - July/August 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Talking Stick - July/August 2013