The University of North Alabama celebrated Diversity Education Week April 3 through April 7. Diversity Education Week is nationally celebrated every year during the first full week of April. The events for the week were sponsored by the Mitchell-West Center for Social Inclusion and Disability Support Services (DSS). Events were held throughout the week for students to attend and celebrate diversity.

According to the Mitchell-West Center for Social Inclusion, “Diversity Education Week is celebrated as a part of upholding our commitment to creating a welcoming and inclusive campus. We use the week to promote awareness and understanding of diverse cultures and intersectional identities by building opportunities for connection, community and engagement.”

Diversity Education Week became an annual celebration at UNA in 2005 through the Office of Diversity and Institutional Equity. It was then taken over by UNA’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Office. For the past few years, the Mitchell-West Center for Social Inclusion has teamed up with DSS to keep the week going.

“Over the last three years, our office and the Mitchell-West Center for Social Inclusion, along with the DEI office, have spearheaded the initiative to keep this week moving,” said DSS Director Jeremy Martin. “It’s extremely important.” 

Martin is very passionate about promoting Diversity Education Week. He works closely with a diverse range of students and strives to make sure that everyone on campus feels welcome.

“Our mission within the university is accessibility and inclusion,” Martin said. “The Mitchell-West Center, their mission is inclusivity and making sure everyone feels welcome. There’s not a better event that you could have other than Diversity Education Week to make sure that we are highlighting inclusion and making sure everyone feels welcome. It’s important to have students see other students like themselves.”

Martin believes that Diversity Education Week fosters conversations about inclusivity and highlights the importance of diverse education. He wants UNA to continue to highlight diversity and inclusion, and he hopes other universities follow suit. 

“[The week] is really just to highlight all of our students across campus and make sure we are providing an enriched experience that is inclusive and accessible for anyone,” Martin said. 

The week kicked off on April 3 with an activity held at the Guillot University Center (GUC). Students could come by and craft sensory items, such as stress balls and other toys. According to Martin, this is always one of the most popular events of the week, as many students enjoy making stress toys in preparation for upcoming finals. 

The week continued with a workshop supporting non-traditional students on April 3, an Identity Pledge and Diversity Student Panel on April 4, and a Re-Think Simulation on April 6. Free t-shirts and bracelets were handed out at the events. 

At the Identity Pledge, students were invited to sign an Inclusive Language Pledge to promote using inclusive language across campus. The Re-Think Simulation was an immersive experience to educate students and have them rethink ways that they view diversity and inclusion. 

“We’re super excited for the Diversity Student Panel!” Martin said. “I think we have eight students sitting on the panel. We have students from [the DSS] office, Military Veterans Affairs students, non-traditional students, students that work with the Mitchell-West Center and international students. We really tried to highlight students from all over campus.”

The panel featured UNA students from all walks of life and allowed them to talk about their experiences at the university. 

“The purpose of this week is to bring awareness to the diversity that we have on campus and to celebrate that in many different areas,” said DSS Assistant Director Megan Simmons. “I think a lot of times we see diversity as one particular thing, but really it can encompass a wide variety of students.”