What does each letter of the LGBTQIA+ acronym mean? How has our understanding about gender evolved from a male/female binary to a gender spectrum? And why does the sharing of gender pronouns matter? 

In this workshop, we will explore concepts of gender and sexuality, including the differences between assigned sex at birth, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and romantic orientation. We will also examine the power of language to include or exclude, and the importance of normalizing inclusive gender identity language in the workplace. Participants will also learn about existing BU resources to support BU employees who identify as LGBTQIA+. 

We tend to think of biases as conscious attitudes that are intentional, malicious, and easy to see. But most of the bias that occurs inside us and around us is unconscious, or implicit – learned assumptions that our brains leap to automatically, influencing our actions in ways that go against our consciously stated values. When these actions cause harm to others, we call them microaggressions. 

In this workshop, we will explore the ways that bias and microaggressions show up in ourselves, in society, and in the workplace. Participants will learn to identify forms of implicit bias and the various “-isms” they reflect. We will also work to understand the unintentional but very real harm of microaggressions and begin to develop the muscles and skills needed to name, interrupt and take responsibility for them. Lastly, participants will identify actionable ways they can bring the knowledge co-created in the workshop into their own spaces at BU and beyond.  

How do we create more inclusive learning spaces? What does Inclusive Teaching look like in physical spaces? What does it look like in digital spaces?  

Designed for Faculty and Staff who supports Learning Spaces activities, this workshop will explore key D& I terms, concepts, and pedagogical approaches in Inclusive Learning Spaces, from classroom climate to the tone of a syllabus to the integration of information technology in digital learning spaces. Through these, participants will develop new practices in advancing inclusion, innovation, and problem-based learning with students. This workshop is held in partnership with the Inclusive Pedagogy Initiative and the Shipley Center for Digital Learning & Innovation.  

What does neurodiversity mean? How can we understand neurodiversity as both a field of research and a social justice movement? And how can we all benefit from abandoning traditional ideas about “right” and “wrong” ways of thinking and learning?  

In this workshop, we will explore the term neurodiversity, its history, and different types of neurodivergence. We will also explore best practices for supporting neurodivergent people in the workspace and fostering inclusion of divergence across the BU community and beyond. 

This workshop is held in partnership with the BU Disability & Access Services (DAS).  

Asian, Black, Brown, Latinx, Native American, White – where do these uniquely American categories of race come from?  How did Irish and Italian immigrants to the US, who were not considered white, acquire whiteness over time?  How do racism and its impacts hurt all of us, regardless of race? And how can we begin to imagine ourselves as antiracists, actively working to oppose the policies, behaviors, and beliefs that perpetuate racism?  

In this workshop, we will examine key concepts in race and racism and learn how racism manifests and functions in our society. Participants will learn to identify dimensions of racism, develop skills needed to interrupt racist harm, and explore how to be anti-racist in daily life.