Office of Equity and Inclusion
Updates and Upcoming Events
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30th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Convocation!
Father Bryan Massingale, one of the most distinguished voices in theological and social ethics, will deliver Loyola University Maryland’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr., Convocation address on Wednesday, January 18, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. in McGuire Hall. "Racial Justice Then and Now: Honoring the Past, While Looking to the Future" will be moderated by Karsonya Wise Whitehead, Ph.D., founding director of the Karson Institute for Race, Peace & Social Justice and Professor of Communication and African and African American Studies at Loyola.
Father Massingale will offer new perspectives on the historical and contemporary challenges of racial justice and explore how education can be used to combat racism and promote reconciliation and justice.
This event is free and open to the public, but advance registration is encouraged.
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IDEA Spotlights
In each newsletter, the office of equity and inclusion will highlight individuals within Loyola who are working to make our campus an inclusive and welcoming place for all people. In this edition, we are spotlighting Caroline Kovatch, Interfaith and Ecumenical Ministries Program Coordinator Graduate Assistant, Campus Ministry; Stepf Richie Diaz, Associate Director of Recruitment and Staff Development, Office of Student Life; and Oghenetoja Okoh, Assistant Professor, History.
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 Caroline Kovatch (she/her)
Interfaith and Ecumenical Ministries Program Coordinator Graduate Assistant, Campus Ministry.
Caroline serves as the Interfaith and Ecumenical Ministries Program Coordinator Graduate Assistant. Caroline graduated from Loyola University of Maryland in May 2021 with a BA in Psychology and had such a wonderful and fulfilling undergraduate experience that she decided to continue her professional education at Loyola. Caroline is currently in Loyola’s Clinical Professional Counseling (CPC) Program. She is passionate about supporting others through her clinical work and is excited to use these skills to continue to build a strong and supported interfaith community at Loyola.
Within her role, she plans, coordinates, and oversees the implementation of events, celebrations, and services for members of the Loyola community with diverse faith traditions and practices. She is a facilitator for the Interfaith Advisory Board (IAB), a group of faculty and staff members committed to making Loyola a more inclusive place for people of all faiths, traditions, and practices. Caroline also connects and collaborates with students to develop new diverse religious programming that can be implemented at Loyola for all students.
Caroline has supported many of Campus Ministry’s events including Loyola’s first Hanukkah Celebration that took place in December 2022. The event included music, traditional games, food, and lots of laughter. She hopes to continue implementing programs in line with the Jewish faith tradition and make the Hanukkah Celebration a yearly event. Additionally, Caroline helped to orchestrate a launch party for the newly formed Muslim Student Association (MSA) and is currently planning events and celebrations for Holi and Ramadan in the spring.
Lastly, she planned the first-ever Spirituality Panel which was a group of student panelists from different faith traditions who shared the joys of their faith, the challenges they face on campus, and what changes need to be made at Loyola to make our interfaith community more inclusive. She is planning to organize another spirituality panel in the spring semester as well.
Caroline is a native New Yorker but has grown to call Baltimore her home away from home. In her spare time, she enjoys being outside in nature, engaging in group exercise classes at Loyola’s Fitness and Aquatic Center, trying new restaurants, and exploring the greater Baltimore community with friends. She credits her passion for DEI work to her family, especially her mother, for instilling in her that a life well lived is a life devoted to the care of others. She follows this mindset in everything she does, and it has molded her career path as a mental health counselor and her work in Interfaith and Ecumenical Ministries.
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 Stepf Richie Diaz (They/Them)
Associate Director of Recruitment and Staff Development, Office of Student Life
Stepf started at Loyola in August 2019 as the Assistant Director for Newman Towers and is now the Associate Director for Recruitment and Staff Development in the Office of Student Life. Stepf is a queer, nonbinary, Latine, first-gen student who is completing their second master’s degree in curriculum and instruction for social justice here at Loyola.
Within their current role, they plan and implement the training and recruitment processes for student leaders and professional staff, with a focus on making sure that processes are equitable, and unnecessary barriers are removed for all applicants. They also work with Loyola’s All-Gender Housing to ensure that students have a safe place to call home regardless of gender.
Stepf is involved in the LGBTQ+ collective which is a group of faculty, admin, and staff whom all work with the LGBTQ+ community in their roles and come together throughout the semester to share updates and work collaboratively to benefit our students. Stepf is also a Title IX intake officer and is always willing to provide students with more information about the Title IX process and reporting system.
When asked what motivates their passion for DEI work, they responded:
“I grew up with a lot of negative messages from my family about many of my identities. When I was in my junior year of college my family learned that I was queer, and I was kicked out of my house and lost the ability to use my mother’s information for my FAFSA (Federal Application for Federal Student Aid). The college I was at had no idea how to work with a student in my situation and even though I only owed $1000 to be caught up financially they were unable to help so I transferred. At my new University, I changed my major to social work, and within the first week of the semester, the head of the department was able to connect me with multiple individuals who helped me file my FAFSA paperwork as a homeless student. I completed my bachelor’s degree and my master’s degree while legally homeless, and the embarrassment I felt at the time lit a fire in me to make sure that other students have the support I did not have at the beginning. I have focused my educational and personal pursuits on understanding and actively working against the systems of oppression that exist and disproportionately impact individuals with multiple marginalized identities. In social work, we often say that our goal is to create a world where we are not needed, and that has driven me to do the work that I do. I hope to create a campus culture where students feel as though they matter; their identities matter, their safety matters, their dreams matter, and that at least one person on campus believes in them.”
If you see them around campus, please feel free to say hi – and there is no need for formality, just Stepf is fine, or Stepf Richie if you are feeling fancy. They love hearing about the things other people are passionate about whether that is a social justice issue that is important to you, or a fun fact or life hack that has changed your life.
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 Oghenetoja Okoh, Ph.D. (she/her)
Assistant Professor, History
Dr. Okoh, assistant professor of history, joined the Loyola community in the fall of 2018. Within her role, she teaches modern African history and the history of the African diaspora. Her courses are cross listed with the African and African American Studies minor program, as well as Global Studies, Peace and Justice Studies, and Gender and Sexuality Studies. This enables her to engage students who have a wide range of interests across campus.
She also serves as an advisor and mentor to a number of students, which she describes as the best part of her job. Dr. Okoh has played a key leadership role in advocating for ALANA (African, Latinx, Asian and Native American) students and faculty on campus and sits on several committees across campus that support Loyola’s mission as a Jesuit institution of higher learning.
Her first book manuscript, Minority Identity in Nigeria: Contesting and Claiming Citizenship in the Twentieth Century, will be published by Cambridge University Press in 2024. This book traces the process of minoritization among Niger Delta communities from the period of formal colonization to Nigeria’s independence. She reframes Nigeria’s nationalist narrative by centering on these minority communities and argues that their experience significantly informed the political culture of modern Nigeria.
In addition, she is currently designing a unique study abroad course that subverts our understanding of European history by centering the narrative of empire in our appraisal of that history. This summer she will take 12-14 students to Belgium and the Netherlands to learn about their colonial pasts, taking the Congo and South Africa as the primary case studies. She looks forward to this experience with Loyola students and hopes it nurtures their curiosity and inspires growth.
Dr. Okoh is motivated by the belief that none of us are truly free until we are all free. This means that the effort we put in to improve the experience of our marginalized community members is an effort to improve the health and well-being of our larger community. She practices this here at Loyola, in her neighborhood, and in her professional life.
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Do you know someone who you think should be featured? To submit a nomination for the IDEA Spotlights, please fill out this form.
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IDEA Resources
Below are links to resources, support networks, and organizations that can help foster inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility initiatives. If you would like to submit an item, please email Rhona Little.
Gender-Affirming Voice Services
The Loyola Clinical Centers (LCC) provides treatment for people in Maryland in the areas of psychology, literacy, hearing, speech, and language. As a mission driven organization, the LCC strives to create an inclusive environment and train students in best practices to deliver evidence-based assessment and intervention services to individuals and families of all ages, cultural backgrounds, and socioeconomic statuses.
The LCC provides a variety of voice services including gender-affirming voice care for the transgender and gender-diverse community. Through comprehensive evaluations and client-centered treatment, the LCC offers services for those who seek voice and communication training. With vocal health as the utmost priority, services can include adjustment of pitch, volume, intonation, voice quality, resonance, fluency, articulation, and communication style. It is the goal of the LCC to be a community-based resource that offers a safe and supportive setting for all individuals along the gender spectrum as they explore voice and communication changes that more fully align with their gender identity and/or expression.
If you are a student or employee of Loyola University Maryland seeking gender-affirming voice services or would like more information on these services, please email Jordan Differding, MS, CCC-SLP, jmdifferding@loyola.edu and Elizabeth Knotts, MS, CCC-SLP efknotts@loyola.edu.
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Counseling Center's 24/7 Confidential Mental Wellness Resource
The Counseling Center has several tools and resources for students to use independently, whether they are in-between counseling sessions or just looking for ways to address their mental health and wellness in general.
One of those resources is Togetherall, a 24/7 confidential peer-to-peer mental wellness resource, free to all enrolled Loyola students. Topics can be discussed anonymously and in addition to commonly identified mental health concerns such as anxiety, depression, academic concerns, and relationship concerns, including those related to identity-based trauma and stress. Students can register here today.
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Diversity Workshops for Communication Department's Faculty and Students.
The Communication Department, in collaboration with the Office of Academic Affairs, is organizing two diversity workshops for communication faculty and students. Facilitated by Dr. George L. Daniels, the workshops will take place on Monday, February 20, 2023, in College Center 113. The exact time for each session is still to be determined.
The faculty session will focus on pedagogical strategies for engaging students with concepts of race and other social identities in communication courses. The student session will focus on incorporating diversity and inclusion in programming, storytelling, and content creation for media and student organizations.
For more information, please reach out to Dr. Masudul Biswas at mkbiswas@loyola and Dr. Elliot King at eking@loyola.edu.
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HR Trainings and Workshops
Preventing Workplace Harassment
This program examines this topic, in detail so all employees are prepared if they experience any related situations at Loyola. Presented by HR Representatives.
Sponsored by Human Resources
- Dates: 2/21/2023
- Time: 11:00 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
- Location: Sellinger VIP Lounge
Violence in the Workplace
This program will help employees deal with the growing issue of workplace violence and create dialogue about the shared responsibility of maintaining a safe workplace. Presented by Director Public Safety, Adrian Black.
Sponsored by Human Resources
- Dates: 2/21/2023
- Time: 11:45 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
- Location: Sellinger VIP Lounge
Employee Assistance Program Training for Supervisors
Content reflects the challenges most frequently faced by Loyola supervisors. Presented by a KEPRO representative.
- Dates: 3/2/2023
- Time: 1:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
- Location: College Center Room 105
Mandated Reporter Training for Supervisors
We are committed to providing a safe environment where students and employees can flourish. As reminder, all faculty and supervisors are considered Title IX mandated reporters with responsibility to report incidents of any form of sexual misconduct. This 30-minute training session reviews recent updates to the harassment and discrimination policy and the mandated reporter’s obligation to report incidents of sexual misconduct.
- Dates: 3/2/2023
- Time: 1:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
- Location: College Center Room 105
LinkedIn Learning Modules
Additional training modules are available to employees through LinkedIn Learning. To access these modules, please visit: https://www.linkedin.com/learning-login/. Employees should type in their Loyola email address and select continue. Employees should then type in DEI or the specific course in the search bar at the top of the page. Below are a few of the trainings provided:
- Drive Organizational Change for DEI
- Be an Inclusive Organization People Won’t Leave
- What is diversity, inclusion, and equity?
- DEI in a new normal
- Become aware of unconscious bias
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If you would like to contribute relevant news items, events, professional development opportunities, or community updates and accomplishments, please send them to rlittle1@loyola.edu
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