PULLMAN – More than 1,200 WSU faculty, staff and students have been trained since September in the cultural competency needed to be competitive in today’s global market. That included more than 500 employees of Facilities Operations.While the workshops have been quite successful, the Diversity Education Team facilitators recently partnered with WSU Student Involvement to reach more student leaders through the Global Perspective Campaign.
Photo: Jeff Guillory teaching a diversity workshop (photo taken by Tara Cunningham, WSU Today Intern).
“We have trained folks in every department or college at WSU, including regional campuses,” said Jeff Guillory, diversity education director. “We want student leaders to be aware that employers want graduating students with exceptional levels of cultural intelligence and skills.
“Even well-traveled folks find it challenging when dealing with multicultural issues,” he said.
For the past four years, Guillory and his team have traveled around the state leading workshops to educate the WSU community about the skills required in a multicultural environment.
“Our philosophy goes well beyond diversity; we believe we have more things in common than differences,” he said. “Beyond our multicultural differences are our similarities, the things we have in common. One example is bias: we all have it. The question is what do we do with it.”
The workshops are classroom immersion experiences that allow participants to test their skills in real-life situations and respond appropriately, Guillory said.
The Global Perspective Campaign will adapt the cultural competency workshops to prepare student leaders and their groups for a multicultural work environment. The goal is to generate interest among faculty and one day develop a curriculum around the concept, Guillory said.
For more information go ONLINE @: http://www.lead.wsu.edu/workshops
To schedule a workshop for your group, contact Guillory at guillory@wsu.edu.
