There's a quote I live by: 'Emulate those whose knowledge and success you wish to gain and one day surpass.' When I think of this quote, I think of a hero of mine, Malcolm X, who fought for ideals in which he believed. Malcolm X had an active and assertive preconception of the world around him, unlike Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose motives were peaceful. Through trials and tribulations, Malcolm X was able to see that his ideals were flawed by ill intentions and eventually was able to find respect for all diversity.

We can't live in the past; a more diverse world awaits us. We have to remember our past but also learn from our past. As individuals grow, accepting our faults and preconceptions are the first steps to moving toward a more diverse world in which we can all take part.

As a Disability Service Provider on the Longwood campus I am charged with promoting inclusive learning, physical and social environments. Through collaboration, education and empowerment the Office of Disability Services partners with students, faculty and staff to focus on abilities rather than disabilities. With a campus community eager to learn, full participation of individuals with disabilities can be achieved through a community effort.

It is my personal and professional belief that even though we are on the brink of the twenty-first century, most of our universities and colleges struggle with the challenge of becoming multicultural institutions of higher education within these United States. This presents significant barriers for our efforts to provide equitable education for all students. Ultimately, we must collectively engage in deliberate strategies for eliminating this crisis within our own spheres of influence. I attest that failure to confront the barriers to the full realization of these ideals would mean a failed educational system for everyone.

I believe in promoting diversity on campus to create a more open and unified environment. Part of being a student leader is encouraging a safe environment where everyone can express their opinions openly and honestly.

By being involved in a variety of different activities on campus I try to promote ties between organizations and further the sense of community that is already here at Longwood.

"I grew up in an isolated environment in the Northeast (Pittsburgh) where, as the saying went, there was a Catholic church on every corner, but the world has changed dramatically since then.

Now you can communicate with anyone at any time anywhere in the world. God created all of us - white, black, brown, red, yellow, whatever. We are all his children, and there shouldn't be things in the world that separate us from one another. My work with the Diversity Council has taken away barriers and, I hope, brought some unity." 

As a teacher, I believe my role is to provide students with the critical and creative thinking / writing skills they need to question and advance their understandings of social constructs set both by society and the individual. In the classroom, we explore elements of both individual identity (including one's race, class, sex, gender, sexuality, and so forth) as well as collective identities (what it means, for example, to be American or what it means to be a Capitalist).

I encourage free and open debate in the classroom, and I expect my students to articulate problems they have noticed within their chosen professions and the public sphere and to formulate practical solutions to those problems.

One of the key components to promoting diversity is the ability to distinguish yourself among your peers by subtly emphasizing the talents and abilities you have been gifted with and doing those things well. It requires not only a vision but the initiative to act upon that vision.

Longwood University provides its students with the means to make their goals possible while developing a strong sense of community. Advisers, coaches, and students are all dependent upon one another to ensure success, reinforcing the idea of community. Each campus organization is a product of diverse individuals who have come together with a shared vision and a strong work ethic. Groups not only create opportunity for the present but create the opportunity for future members to cultivate greater things and share in and contribute to a tradition.