BRAVE Dialogues11:00AM-12:30PM July 12th, 2023
The South Central Regional Library Council (SCRLC) in partnership with Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3) invites you to participate in BRAVE Dialogues this Summer. This program provides an opportunity to participate in a dynamic curriculum designed to develop critical insight about yourself and others while engaging in an enriching experience that provides language and to follow through with actions that support Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging initiatives. We'll explore the concepts of structural inequality and privileged and targeted identity statuses, and then delve into societal group dynamics using a caucus approach. The series will end with discussing biases and ways to overcome them. There will also be information on how to be an ally and collaborating to create alliances for Social Justice.
Objectives:
Develop critical insight about yourself and others while engaging in an enriching experience
Engage in the development of an action plan in support of DEIB
Explore opportunities to be a more supportive community for colleagues of color in your library and beyond
Dates:
Participants should be able to commit to attending all 5 sessions, which will be held on consecutive Wednesdays.
July 12, 11 a.m. -12:30 p.m. Session 1 An introduction to each other and the dialogue process.
July 19, 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Session 2 Introduces the concept of structural inequality; beginning with participants' experiences, this week's dialogue explores how stereotypes connect the present to the past.
July 26,11: a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Session 3 delves into the concepts of privileged and targeted identity statuses using an experiential exercise.
August 2 11. a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Session 4 The fourth session delves further into societal group dynamics using a caucus approach.
August 9 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sessions 5 and 6 The fifth session gives an opportunity to think about our biases and discuss ways to overcome them. The sixth session provides the group with an opportunity to think about collaboration, being an ally, and finding ways to take action personally and collectively to form alliances for social justice.
Registration
This opportunity is FREE and limited to SCRLC Members and their members (school libraries, public libraries). The maximum number of participants is 20. It will be first come, first served. If this program is successful, we may be able to offer it again.
Facilitators
Rhonda Kowalski: Rhonda has been a trained BRAVE facilitator since its inception at TC3 in2017. She has been involved in the Dryden community since her teen years. She has coached,
mentored, and currently runs a community-based group, Lion Legacy, that has helped secure
funds for those during tragedy, hosts a speaker series, Behind the Mask, as well as a biennial
remembrance event, the Walk to Remember. In 2017, Rhonda was awarded as one of 40
Caring Adults in Tompkins County. She also won the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence
in 2019 and an award for her dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion in 2018.
Seth Thompson: Seth has been a trained BRAVE facilitator since its inception at TC3 in 2017.Seth brings with him two decades of experience in the field of diversity, equity, inclusion, and
belonging. He is a skilled facilitator, consultant, and higher education professional with more
than two decades of progressive leadership experience. He is known for establishing rapport
with diverse groups and facilitating positive movements toward stakeholder goals and vision.
Seth currently serves his local community by supporting boards and council initiatives. Seth
holds an Associate's degree in Liberal Arts from SUNY Canton, a Bachelor's degree in History,
and a Master's of Science in Education degree from SUNY Potsdam.
If you have questions about this program, please contact Christine Brown, SCRLC's Outreach Services Librarian, at cbrown@scrlc.org
