more united culturally - weber state university
TRANSCRIPT
October 2011
Issue One
Issue
Hispanic Area Council
Finding An Agent That’s Right For You
On behalf of the staff of the WSU Multicultural Student Center (MSC), I would like to wish
you and those you hold dear all the good fortunes of life, health, peace, and prosperity
throughout the year! This publication would not be possible without the talented students of
the MSC STEPS program and their supervisor, Jody Perkins. Thank you for making this
newsletter a possibility.
The Center is thriving with successful outcomes as student and community visits are
continuously on the rise. In response to the 2009-11 student satisfaction surveys; 2011
Program Review; MSC Top 20 goals; and as the result of the diligent work of our dynamic
staff, we have implemented and enhanced programming and services that will meet your
needs. Connecting you with the guidance and support to be successful at the University is our
priority. We look forward to meeting you at the Center!
Michiko Nakashima-Lizarazo
Director, Multicultural Student Center
MSC Programs and Services
Peer Mentor program
Student Training Employment Program & Services (STEPS)
Scholarship Program (secured up to $200K vs. $80K in 2008)
Weekly Workshops (Thursdays @ 1p.m. in SC 167)
MSC Activity/Leadership Tuition Waivers help ease the financial
burden of school and engage students on campus & community
Oportunidad Scholarship Program ($50K for 4 years, in its final
year)
ACCESS (Athletics Community Collaborating in Education & Services for Success)
Campus & Community Partnerships
Ceremony of Excellence
o Honors scholastic and high academic achievers
o Top Ten Senior- presented with Kente cloth honor sashes
Wall of Fame
o 3.2+ GPA Honor student
Graduate/ Professional School emphasis & assistance
Academic, Cultural, Social, Spiritual, and Service Projects
Enhanced mini-computer lab, study area, and lounge
United What’s New >>>
Area Councils >>>
Hispanic Area Council
Black Scholars United
American Indian Council
Asian/ Polynesian Council
From the desk of Our Director
Making a good first impression counts!
Asian and Pacific Islander Area Council
Lam Nguyen
2011-12 Asian & Pacific Islander Student Senator
What is TOA? TOA stands for The Ohana
Association. The purpose of the TOA is to
unite students to other Polynesians students
in order to create awareness on key issues, to
teach our culture to one another. The main
focuses are:
as friends and as a support system
for the success of all Polynesian students.
and preserve our heritage and
culture.
a learning environment by sharing
our heritage and culture with WSU and
surrounding communities.
in the larger community
through service
For meeting times and upcoming visits
visit us online.
http://www.weber.edu/multicultural/councils
.html
Why do you recommend that WSU
multicultural students use the Center?
I recommend multicultural students use
the Center to share their stories, create
new friendships, get useful resources,
learn new skills, get motivated to be
successful in school and life and to share
with others and learn from others.
The Hispanic Area Council (HAC) represents the Hispanic/Latino student population at
Weber State University and raises cultural awareness, pride, and focuses on academic issues.
After a successful leadership retreat during the summer, we were able to decide our entire
calendar year of programs and events. As one of our educational and cultural events, Dia de
Los Muertos (Day of the Dead), is an event in which people will have the opportunity to
remember their loved ones. This is a ritual that has been practiced by indigenous groups like
the Aztecs and has been celebrated throughout European countries, Asia, and Africa. We are
planning on having an altar in the Union Building to commemorate those who have passed
on. Individuals who wish to participate may bring a picture (copies only), a memento of a
loved one, or food and display it on the altar.
Others who are not familiar with Dia de Los Muertos will have the opportunity to talk to a
HAC member who will provide insight to this unique cultural celebration. Please join us on
Nov. 2 in the Union Building (from 9am - 1pm) where we will provide Pan de Muerto
(Bread for the Dead) and hot chocolate. This event is free and open for all to participate.
We will then volunteer at a local cemetery (4-6 pm) to clean up and decorate the graves of
loved ones.
HAC participated in the Fiesta Mexicana at the Utah State Fair in which we hosted a booth
and handed out information about WSU and talked to many individuals about college.
We meet every Friday from 1pm to 2pm (location UB Senate Chambers, 321).
For more information, please contact Senator Belia Alvarado @ (801) 626-7330.
http://www.weber.edu/multicultural/councils.html
“Embracing our past, enhancing our present to inspire our future”
From the Desk of Our Director
Culturally
Contact us at 801-626-7330 weber.edu/multicultural
Text "MSC" to 469-579-2390 to receive updates via WSU mobile.
A monthly insight into multicultural life at the WSU campus
Eveni Tafiti MSC Counselor
Next Issue:
Meet the MSC
STEPS Peer
Mentors
MSC Student
employee of the
month
Student
Achievements
MSC activities
And much much
more
. Teresa Holt
American Indian Council
Black Scholars United
The Black Scholars United organization is off
to a great start this year! On September 17th
,
we held our fall barbeque on campus and it
was an extreme success. We were able to
spread the word about BSU and our mission,
and recruited new, motivated, and bright
young men and women, all while having tons
of fun and enjoying great food. This
semester, BSU will be participating in
community events such as the Northern Utah
Jeff Simons
MSC Counselor
Jody Perkins supervises the MSC STEPS
program. A former college football coach,
Jody served as past BSU Advisor (2009-
2011) and received many accolades for his
efforts. He was a finalist for the 2011 Crystal
Crest Friend of Student Award, and four of
his students affiliated with BSU also
received 2011 Crystal Crest Awards.
According to Dr. Forrest Crawford, Assistant
to the President for Diversity, this is the most
WSU awards ever earned by African
American students in a single year in the
entire history of the University.
Why is being a part of the Center
important to you?
“Because it gives me the opportunity to
work directly with students in helping
give them direction and encouragement at
a very critical time in their life.”
Jacqueline Smith is an advisor at the
Multicultural Student Center and also serves as
the Black Scholars United Advisor. She is a
recent graduate of Weber State University,
where she majored in Social Work and
graduated Magna Cum Laude. She is a member
of the Golden Key International Honor Society,
as well as Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and
was WSU’s 2011 Crystal Crest Woman of the
Year.
Aside from being involved in committees on
campus, she is also a Co-Coordinator of the
Interdisciplinary Society for Quantitative
Research in Music and Medicine International
Conferences. The conference is
interdisciplinary in nature and is devoted to the
dissemination of new, unpublished research
relating to the field of music and medicine.
WSU Native Americans have one of their largest enrollments
in decades with a total of 165 N.A.’s this fall 2011. The
American Indian Council is comprised of a senator and 5
leaders to complete the leadership of the council. We like to
plan fun social activities each semester and we have fun
council meetings with lots of fun activities.
Hope you can join us on Wednesdays @ 12:30 PM in the
Student Service Center (SC) 167.
http://www.weber.edu/multicultural/councils.html
.
Teresa Holt
MSC Student Specialist
Why is being a part of the Center
important to you? Through the center I
have been able to provide different
resources that help our student population to
be connected with their culture, values and
traditions. At the same time it is important
to help our students to achieve graduation,
find a job where they can develop their
skills, assisting them to build a professional
career & help our communities through
education to finish the gap between lack of
opportunities and poverty.
Wall of Fame
MSC webmaster, Isaac Farley, won the
WSU Convocations photo contest and got
to meet and have lunch with his idol
Jewish reggae artist Matisyahu. Winning
photo.
“Meeting Matisyahu was a dream
come true for me. I've enjoyed his music
for a very long time and meeting him in
person gave me an even better idea of his
personality that you don't get from his
music. I want to be just like him when I
grow up.”
- Isaac Farley
Utah Coalition-HIV AIDS Project’s “Night at the Speakeasy” and the “Expect the Great”
Education and Career Fair. We will also be assisting in the Eagle Scout Book Drive, in an
effort to collect 3,000 books, K-12 for those in need. BSU meeting times are Sat. 11:30 AM
in the Union Lair. For more information about the organization, please contact Jacqueline
Smith, BSU Advisor at (801) 626-7303 or by email: [email protected].
Teresa is a former student-athlete
of Weber State University. She
graduated in Health Promotion
and now works as a Student
Specialist. She is dedicated to
helping students succeed and
become a contributing person in
society. She also manages the
A.C.C.E.S.S. program which is
designed to help student-athletes
gain awareness of resources and
services around campus and then
implement them into their lives.
*learn from yesterday, live for
today, hope for tomorrow*
Coleen Sheehan is the
multicultural center secretary.
She has been with the
multicultural center for nine
years and loves every minute of
it. Coleen enjoys working at the
Center because it provides a
welcoming atmosphere and it
also gives students many
opportunities to succeed. One of
her favorite parts of working at
the Multicultural Center is
seeing the expression on eager
students’ faces to get an
education. Aside from working
at the Center, Coleen enjoys
gardening, pets and traveling.
Coleen Sheehan
MSC Secretary
What is STEPS?
The Student Training Employment Program and
Services (STEPS) not only allows each student
worker to gain a refined knowledge of the WSU
major and minor disciplines and related student
services resources, but it helps them to develop
knowledge that will prepare them as outstanding
employment candidates following completion of
their WSU programs of study.
These students will have numerous opportunities to
learn and apply marketable skills in
communication, goal setting, planning and strategy,
critical thinking and problem solving, training, and
teamwork.
The STEPS program is a great “step” into the right
direction when it comes to character and career
building.
.
Jody Perkins MSC STEPS Interim Supervisor
STEPS
Editorial Supervisor: Jody Perkins Chief Editor: Laura Natalia Munoz Co-Editor: Andres Morelli
For more information or advertising please contact us at (801) 626-7330
Monica Rodriguez MSC Counselor
Jacqueline Smith
MSC Advisor