ABOUT THE MULTICULTURAL NEWSLETTER . . .

The concept of the Multicultural Newsletter is to provide an avenue for information, updates, opinions, news, and events that will expand the cultural horizons of all Ripon College students. Each issue will include upcoming cultural student

organization events, articles and opinion pieces by Ripon College students, and see the great things the student activities office is doing. The ultimate hope of this newsletter is that the reader(s) will find him/herself more aware of the cultural

atmosphere and events present not only on the Ripon College campus, but around the United States and the world.

SPRING 2013 EDITION

INSIDE THIS ISSUE :

HOME AWAY FROM

HOME PROGRAM

1

MLK WEEK 2013 2

BLACK H ISTORY-

MONTH

3

WOMEN ’S H ISTORY

MONTH

CULTURE WEEK/

BUCKS GAME

SPRING BREAK TRIP/

STUDENT PERSPEC-

TIVE

UPCOMING EVENTS/

NEW MULTICULTUR-

AL POSITION

3

4

5

6

MULTICULTURAL NEWSLETTER

—A caring and supportive

hand or ear, lots of hugs

And most of all, friendship.

On January 28, 2013, the

current host families and

Ripon students gathered

for a meal to start the

spring semester! Laughs

and stories were shared

with fun for all.

28 January 2013

By Kyonna Withers

The Home Away from

Home program links

international students at

Ripon College with area

families and couples. It

gives the students a

broader and deeper

experience of American

culture. And it gives

students local “parents”

who can cheer them on

when they participate in

college activities.

Some of the things local

parents have provided

include:

—Occasional lunch or

dinner off-campus

—Transportation to and

from airports, shopping

malls, grocery stores

—Family activities like

water-skiing, movies,

holiday dinners, birthday

celebrations

—Trips to museums, state

parks, concerts, and other

special events

—A quiet refuge away

from the residence halls

—Advice on classes,

campus jobs, graduate

school, romance, etc.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME PROGRAM

In recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 21, Ripon College held a series of events to engage the college community in his dream:

The Inauguration Oath Screening on Monday, January 21, was successful as we watched as President Barack Obama renewed

his vow to lead the nation in his second term.

MLK Week Brunch on Tuesday, Jan. 22 celebrated the Ripon community and community leaders who emulate the ideals

of Martin Luther King Jr. The faculty, staff and student winners (in that order) are pictured to the left.

Tim Wise provided the week’s keynote Address on Wednesday, Jan. 23, in Great Hall.

Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and educators in the United States. Recently named

among the 25 Visionaries Who are Changing Your World by “Utne Reader,” Wise has spoken in 49 states,

on more than 600 college campuses and to community groups across the nation about white privilege in America, comparative racism, race

and education.

“5 Issues, 5 Leaders, 5 Minutes” on Thursday January 24 was an interactive workshop featuring five prominent Ripon

leaders condensing their most thought-provoking and critical perspectives into five intense minutes on issues within one of

five topics: media, arts, education, economy and activism. This event had audience members reflecting and thinking about

how they view society and how they observe others.

“Continuing the Legacy: What’s Next?” was a 20-minute interactive workshop led by Pieper Chair of

Servant Leadership David William Scott, in remembrance of Martin Luther King and continuing his dream.

Giving Back Community Service: Guest House Homeless Shelter was on Saturday, Jan. 26. Volunteers spent time at

a homeless shelter in Milwaukee which serves meals to at least 85 homeless people daily. Food donations were

accepted in the Student Activities Office prior to the event. Established in 1982 in Milwaukee, the Guest House is a

drop-in center for the homeless.

PAGE 2 MULTICULTURAL NEWSLETTER

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR WEEK 2013! !

Source- http://www.ripon.edu/blog/2013/01/18/celebrating-martin-luther-king-jr/

By: Kyonna Withers

Women’s History Month 2013 had the theme of the Perfect 10?! What is the Perfect 10? And who determines if a woman is or isn't it? This was the main focus for the month of March. The month’s activities ranged from a kick off event., multiple trips off campus for leisure and for community service, an empowerment fair, a zumba class, a keynote speaker and a women's appreciation day. During the appreciation day women all over campus were given flowers and button mirrors (actual mirrors with the back of the mirror stating the women’s confidence pledge). Ladies were delighted to know that there was a day to honor them as strong females on this campus. During the month the traveling Barbie also attended events. This life size image of “Barbie” (presumed to be the Perfect 10) was a representation that if Barbie was a real person she wouldn't be able to walk or stand due to the disproportion of her bust and waist to lead to the thought “we all are perfect just the way we are”.

BLACK H ISTORY MONTH 2013! !

They had wonderful attendance at all of their events and tried something new this year; a her-itage fashion show. Articles of clothing were flown in from all over the world to be displayed and worn for the school to see.

The organization has also gone under new leadership with ris-ing junior Clarence Sanon ‘15 taking the lead for 2013-2014.

The Black Student Union provided a great month of events to celebrate Black History. They started with a comedic approach co-sponsoring with SMAC for comedian Seaton Smith and ended with an educational thought provoking lesson on why a certain race group thought the way they did through Daryl Davis (African American Klu Klux Klan researcher).

Their theme for the month was “Establishing a presence in light of our past” which was a powerful tagline to focus all the events on.

PAGE 3 SPRING 2013 EDITION

WOMEN ’S H ISTORY MONTH 2013! !

Pictured above are Kyonna W, Assistant Di-rector of Student Activi-ties and Michael Crider (multicultural and inter-national student assis-tant) at the kick off event.

For a fun activity the multicultural students were invited to go see the Milwaukee Bucks take on the Atlanta Hawks at BMO Harris Bradley center. The students had so much fun they didn't want to leave the arena. “Its great to be able to get off campus and partake in one of America’s favorite hobbies” said an international student. Various trips are planned yearly for multicultural and international students throughout the year.

CULTURE WEEK

PAGE 4 MULTICULTURAL NEWSLETTER

CULTURE WEEK 2013 IS THE FIRST TO HAPPEN OF ITS KIND. THIS WEEK WAS PRODUCED SOLELY FROM THE CULTURAL DIVERSITY CLUB AND ENCOMPASSED A FULL WEEK’S WORTH OF ACTIVITIES FROM VARIOUS CULTURES AND LANGUAGES. THE MOST POPULATED EVENTS WERE INTERNATIONAL DINNER AND THE TRIP TO THE WORLD MARKET IN APPLETON. GREAT JOB TO CDC ON A GREAT CULTURE WEEK!

SOCIAL ACTIVITY WITH THE BUCKS

Snow snow go away! Come again next winter! To get away from the snow, this year’s spring break trip was to Mall of America in Bloomington Minnesota. Students were able to walk around the mall, get on roller coasters, dine in the various restaurants, see movies in IMAX, attend a professional NBA game, go swimming and much more! Pictured to the

right is the group dinner at Rain Forest Café during the trip. International students had a wonderful spring break and have already provided suggestions for fall break.

to be in a position to be a student face of Ripon College’s multicultural and international programming.

How much a year has changed things! KP is no longer here, instead the wonderful Kyonna Withers is and it was an amazing experience to work with her. Her characteristic humor and her remarkable drive to provide much different events than Ripon College had experienced was truly marvelous to be a part of. I also have gained a better appreciation for what

makes an event successful and especially for the amount of work that so many of the staff members put in to make Ripon College a successful undertaking. There are innumerous memories from this past year from Kyonna and I dancing during an event with rrRumba to MLK Week with its new awards brunch, this year was busy and yet for much of the time it didn’t feel too much like work. I couldn’t have asked for better colleagues either be it the students who stood on committees to the various student organizations.

Next year I plan to be staying in this position and I have always advocated for an increased role for student organizations and for the most part I believe that we were successful this year in doing that, but I hope that next year even more organizations will contribute. The more students, staff and faculty that help in educating the campus and in introducing new and varying ideas, the better. I look forward to what next year will bring!

By: Michael Crider

Last year around this time I was being evaluated for my work for SAO by Melissa Bemus and Kristen Pearson. They broached the subject of taking a more active role in the Office and we went through the various positions and their roles. The one that stood out to me was the Multicultural and International Student Affairs Assistant (MISA) position and so I made it clear that I would most like that position over any other, and that is how a white male came

PAGE 5 SPRING 2013 EDITION

SPRING BREAK TRIP

THE YEAR THAT WAS : MULTICULTURAL AND INTERNATIONAL STUDENT AFFAIRS EDITION

Rosh Hashanah September 4

-6

Home Series Dinners– every

Tuesday in September

Black Student Union’s

Welcome Back BBQ–

September 11 5:30pm Scott

Hall

Hispanic Heritage Month

celebration– September 18,

5:30pm Pickard Dining

Room

Native American Day–

September 27

LGBT History Month–

month of October

Higher Education Diversity

Initiative Team conference–

October 3, all over campus

International Month– month

of November

Black Student Union’s Soul

Food Dinner– November 10

5:15pm Great Hall

World Aids Day– December

1

(many more to add, check the

calendar of events weekly!)

300 W. Seward St. Ripon, WI 54971

The Office of Student Activities and Orientation Phone: 920-748-8112 http://www.ripon.edu/studentlife/student_activities/misa/misa.html Editor of newsletter: Kyonna Withers Assistant Director of Student Activities E-mail: withersk@ripon.edu

activities for the

students, and

provide ongoing

support during

their college

experience. The

person will also

help design cultural

sensitivity training

for the campus

while assisting in

providing relevant

programs for the

broader college

There will be a new

Assistant Director

for Multicultural

Student

Recruitment and

Program

Development on

campus in the fall!

This person will

work to recruit

domestic students

from diverse

backgrounds,

facilitate orientation

community. The

search is currently

underway so by the

time fall semester is

here you will be

able to meet this

new individual!

Come by

Admissions or

Student Activities

when you arrive

back on campus in

August to meet our

new Ripon

NEW MULTICULTURAL LIASON TO JOIN SAO!

UPCOMING EVENTS & HOLIDAYS

Please feel free to submit relevant and appropriate articles, stories, events, and more to Kyonna Withers for publication consideration.

Disclaimer: The opinions and views expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of Student Activities and Orientation or the Ripon College community.

colleague and see

what great things

are in store!