Diversity Events

Discussion with Freada Kapor Klein, PhD'84, and Mitch Kapor, facilitated by Interim Dean Madison. This event explored how Freada and Mitch are changing the world through impact investing and expanding opportunity and diversity. Freada and Mitch are founding partners at Kapor Capital and co-chairs of the nonprofit Kapor Center in Oakland, CA, and coauthors of "CLOSING THE EQUITY GAP: Creating Wealth and Fostering Justice in Startup Investing."

Discussion on reproductive freedom with women's rights attorney and activist, Julie F. Kay, in conversation with Interim Dean Madison on International Women's Day. Attorney Julie F. Kay is an expert on women's human rights domestically and internationally. Her initiatives increase support for access to reproductive rights and religious freedom, advance gender equality and work to prevent family violence and promote women's economic security.

Engaging conversation about the success of the Civil Rights Movement and its contemporary impact locally & internationally with accomplished community organizer, human rights activist, author, and the co-founder of the Hill Country Project, Dr. Roy DeBerry. Powerful testimonies of Benton County, Mississippi residents and their extraordinary courage to fight for justice from the book 'Voices from the Mississippi Hill Country' were shared. Discussion of the legacies of segregation, human rights, and one community’s journey for freedom. DeBerry co-hosts the "Dad Daughter Dialogues" podcast. DeBerry is also a Brandeis Alum who led the 1969 Ford Hall takeover protesting the campus racial climate.

REACH is an intensive weekend challenge that allows for the focused dedication of participants to address racial equity issues within our communities through innovation and action. Supported by a team of mentors and advisors, participants will work to create workable solutions that address the racial disparities they have witnessed in our communities at Heller and beyond. Learn more about the 2022 winning student-led teams' proposals.

An engaging dialogue with Carol Anderson, PhD, about the pursuit of racial equity, the barriers to achieving it, and the preservation of human rights in the face of obstruction. We explored the historical legacies of racism, examples of resilience and progress, and avenues to chart a way forward. Dr. Anderson is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies at Emory University and the 2022 winner of the Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize.

Heller students, faculty, and staff joined Dr. Maria Madison for a two-part book discussion of "The Black Agenda: Bold Solutions for a Broken System". These conversations provided an opportunity to explore topics such as climate impacts, health, and technology.

Heller Community Therapist, Roxann Mascoll, held an open dialogue about therapy for Heller students; What therapy is, why people go, what happens in a therapy session, and more.

On Monday, January 10 and Tuesday, January 11, Heller staff, faculty, students, and alumni attended the 7-Day Anti-Racism Challenge Workshop where they explored: The meaning of ‘race’ and ‘racism’; how overt racism appears in our language, symbols, and messaging; and where race and colonization intersect with gender and other identities.

On November 19, Heller community members participated in a conversation and interactive racial literacy workshop, with Dr. Howard C. Stevenson, a nationally recognized clinical psychologist and researcher of racial stress and trauma, and the 2020 winner of the Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize.

On June 5-6, the Heller School hosted its first Racial Equity Action Challenge at Heller (REACH), dedicated to creating actionable initiatives to address racial disparities at Heller and Brandeis and the local community.

The 7-Day Neurodiversity (ND) Inclusion Challenge is a self-guided learning and reflection experience that highlights the need for true inclusion and acceptance, in the Brandeis community and beyond, of those with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, and other neurological disabilities.

This talk provided an update on the latest from the movement for establishing reparations for Black people and set it in an international context vis-à-vis other countries where the struggle for reparative justice has played out.

On March 16, 2021 three Brandeis graduate schools welcomed Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr. and esteemed panelists to discuss the roots of the 21-Day Challenge and its significance in this moment of escalated hate crimes - including anti-Asian hate crimes - and racial reckoning.

In January 2021, the Heller community embarked on Dr. Eddie Moore’s 21-day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge. Students signed up for a proseminar course called “Racial Equity: Intersections of Race, Power, Privilege, Supremacy and Oppression,” which centered around Dr. Moore’s work while integrating lectures from Heller faculty. Students who did not sign up for the course also participated at their own pace along with Heller faculty, staff and alumni.

A cross-disciplinary discussion on racism as a public health and economic crisis, with a focus on action.

On June 2 and 3, 2020, the Heller School held its first Sankofa Community Conference, “Advancing Racial Justice Through Life and Work,” with more than 500 participants over two days.

Videos and resources from the conference available here.

Heller’s Office of Equity, Inclusion and Diversity (EID) organized a two-part event January 21-22 called Ford Hall: Closing the Disparity Gap, to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Ford Hall 2015 protests.

The Heller School welcomed a panel discussion of social justice and change, featuring activist and academic Mel King as well as Christian Perry, MBA/MA SID'17.