The University of Texas at Arlington

Diversity Lecture Series

Through the Diversity Lecture Series, Multicultural Affairs is pleased to host a special line up of distinguished lecturers and performers from across the country whose presentations highlight diversity and social justice topics facing today’s world. Events are free and open to the public. The spring Diversity Lecture is a flagship event of the annual UTA Diversity Week celebration held each March. The Diversity Lecture Series is hosted as a result of university President Spaniolo’s response to the report of the Committee on Diversity and International Understanding.

2013-14 Featured Speakers

Additional details coming soon. Check back for updates.

Oct. 30th 2013
Karen A. Myers, PhD is associate professor in the higher education graduate program at Saint Louis University and Director of the Allies for Inclusion: The Ability Exhibit project
Lecture date and topic to be anounced soon

She has been a college teacher and administrator for over 30 years and currently serves on the Directorate of the ACPA Commission on Professional Preparation and is an ACPA Foundation Trustee and Diamond Honoree. As a writer, researcher, consultant and trainer in the area of disability, she received the ACPA Voice of Inclusion Award, Annuit Coeptis Senior Professional Award, Richard Caple Award, Disability Leadership Award and Wise Woman Award. Her latest accomplishment is Allies for Inclusion: The Ability Exhibit, a national traveling exhibit promoting disability education and awareness.

In addition to classroom teaching with focus on student personnel administration, student development theory, communication skills and college teaching strategies, she facilitates online courses in disability including her self-designed hybrid course, Disability in Higher Education and Society. Karen is an education columnist for Dialogue, a bi-monthly publication from Blindskills, Inc. for people with visual disabilities. She is the author of three books, College Students with Visual Disabilities: Preferences for Effective Interaction (a study of 35 college students with visual disabilities and their communication preferences), The Way I See It: Bumping into Life with Low Vision (a humorous glimpse into her own life) and The Glass Diary (conversations Megan, a young girl with low vision, had with her mirror -- her "glass diary"). In addition to authoring and co-authoring numerous articles and book chapters, Karen is a researcher, consultant and trainer in the area of disability and Universal Instructional Design.

Oct. 21st 2013
Rev. Dr. Jamie Washington serves as the President and Founder of the Washington Consulting Group, a Multicultural Organizational Development Firm based in Baltimore, MD
Lecture date and topic to be anounced soon

Dr. Washington has served as an educator and administrator in higher education for over 20 years. He most recently served as the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). He has been an instructor in Sociology, American Studies and Education, and an Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies at UMBC. Dr. Washington earned his B.S. degree in Therapeutic Recreation and Music from Slippery Rock State College, and a double Masters’ degree from Indiana University/Bloomington in Higher Education Administration and Counseling, with a concentration in Human Sexuality. He holds a Ph.D. is in College Student Development, with a concentration in Multicultural Education from the University of Maryland College Park. Dr. Washington completed his Master of Divinity program at Howard University School of Divinity.

Dr. Washington is a founding faculty member of the Social Justice Training Institute. Dr. Washington has held leadership positions in ACPA, NASPA, ACHUO-I, MACUHO, MCPA, APA, NGLTF, The Campaign to End Homophobia and the National Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Forum. Dr. Washington is a Lead faculty member with the LeaderShape Institute and the National Certified Student Leader Program, a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, Golden Key, Alpha Phi Omega, Phi Delta Kappa, education Honorary, and a Life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. He has over 30 years of experience in music ministry, is an ordained minister and currently serves as an Associate Minister at Unity Fellowship Church of Baltimore.

Jamie Washington has authored and co-authored several books chapters and articles. His most recent work is featured in African American Men in College; and Lessons from the Road, an inspirational book on leadership and life. He’s currently working on his first Book: Reconciliation; Black, Christian and Gay, The Journey to Wholeness. Some of Jamie’s honors include a Mayoral Citation as one of Baltimore’s Men of the Year, the 2001 American College Personnel Association Diamond Honoree award for significant contribution to higher education and student affairs work, and a 2002 Voices of Inclusion Award for his work in the area of social justice education. He received the 2007 Pillars of the Profession Award from the National Student Personnel Association. Jamie was named one of the nation’s twenty five best educators on LGBT issues by Campus Pride in 2010.

Past Diversity Lecture Series events

October 2012 Shane Windmeyer, Author and Executive Director of Campus Pride What’s Your Gay Point Average?	November 28 2012 Dr. Kathy Obear, "Creating an Inclusive Socially Just Campus Community"
March 2012 Jeff Chang, Historian, Hip Hop Journalist, and Author “Can’t Stop Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation”	November 3, 2011 Kip Fulbeck, award winning author, artist, and filmmaker “Who Are You? The Changing Face of America”
October 26, 2011 Mauricio Claver-Carone, Cuba Democracy Advocates "U.S.-Cuba Policy: From the Streets of Havana to the Halls of Capitol Hill."	February 28, 2011 Platanos & Collard Greens Hit theatrical production exploring inter-racial relationships
March 3, 2010 Dr. Maura Cullen, social justice educator and author “Dumb Things Well Intended People Say”	October 3, 2009 Morris Dees, legendary civil rights activist “And Justice For All”
March 3, 2009 Dr. Lani Guinier, educator, attorney, and civil rights advocate “Rethinking Race & Class”	November 17, 2008 Dr. Ronald Takaki, historian and author “A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America”