The Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement provides resources, training and support to Queens and the broader Charlotte community to help unite and bring people of diverse backgrounds together to appreciate, respect and celebrate their differences and commonalities. We are committed to inclusion and equity and towards working to create a society that is fair and just.
We also provide support in connecting co-curricular activities to the curriculum by collaborating with faculty to identify, develop and maintain meaningful partnerships with community organizations. We connect our students with those organizations as they seek to perform various levels of community engagement.
Integrity, Stewardship and Respect
We are proud of our university and will responsibly manage our heritage, our resources and our reputation in the community to ensure that we remain a source of pride for our students, faculty, staff, donors and alumni. We value a sense of caring and community, seek to promote diversity and respect for all people, and recognize the importance of personal integrity and ethical action.
What We Do
Support
The Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement provides support to diverse individuals, clubs and organizations including but not limited to those that represent human identities and qualities such as race, age, gender, religion, sexual orientation, heritage, national origin, socioeconomic class, language and ability.
We support an underrepresented and first generation student population through our peer mentoring program, L.E.A.D. (Learn, Empower, Act, Diversify). L.E.A.D. provides an avenue for academic, social and personal support through face-to-face interactions as well as structured group activities to enhance leadership and personal self-development.
Our office collaborates on programs with the Chapel, as they care for the spiritual health of faculty, staff and students, and also with Stan Greenspon Center for Peace and Social Justice, as they engage in advocacy, social justice and education programs for Queens and the broader Charlotte community.
Educate
We act as a resource for diversity and inclusion education for faculty, staff and students. Those resources may include facilitators, speakers, exhibits, documentaries and more. Additionally, our office hosts and promotes diversity and inclusion events such as relevant speakers, performances, movies and discussions to help enhance awareness, education and appreciation for the differences and commonalities of the Queens and Charlotte community.
Unite
The deliberative dialogues that we host bring Queens and the Charlotte community together to discuss important, timely issues in a civil and respectful manner. We encourage cross-cultural programming between different groups to help bring about understanding and appreciation for those who are different.
The Diversity Lounge is a safe space for students, faculty and staff of diverse backgrounds and beliefs to gather on campus.
Serve
There are endless opportunities for our students, faculty and staff to serve our community and help bring about sustainable and systemic change. Service at Queens is done through five community engagement pillars:
- Civic Engagement: Working to make a difference in the civic life of our communities and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values and motivation to make that difference through volunteerism, internships, community-based learning, activism and organizing for social change.
- Community Service: Providing various levels of volunteer work to help the community.
- Service Learning: Integrating meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities.
- University Outreach: Collaborating with community partners in meaningful and mutually beneficial ways.
- Engaged Scholarship: Putting the academic resources of the University to work in solving and addressing public problems.
We develop, model and maintain genuine partnerships with local communities and community organizations to support community engagement and service learning. Simultaneously, we support the Queens Living Learning Community in their focused efforts in various levels of community service. The Queens Summer in Service Program deploys students into the Charlotte community each summer to complete over 225 hours each at more than ten nonprofit agencies. Their commitment helps the agencies advance their missions to the community.
Assess and Respond
The Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement assesses and responds to diversity and inclusion needs of the entire Queens community; we also conduct and respond to campus climate surveys related to diversity and inclusion evolve current practices.
Contact Us
Learn more about the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement (DICE) by contacting Darryl White, Sr., at whited4@queens.edu.