Conversations on equity were amplified this week on campus by Queen’s first in-person Student Voices Week.
Hosted by the Queen’s Shift Project, Student Voices Week is a series of events created to boost the visibility of the equity-focused work being done at Queen’s. Starting on March 13, the week aimed to make campus a more inclusive environment through collaboration with student equity groups.
“The Shift Project broadly seeks to connect with the dominant cultural students who get to walk through campus and not ever experience a systemic barrier or experience harassment or discrimination, simply because of who they are and how they identify,” Taryn McKenna, Shift Project student inclusion and engagement coordinator, said in an interview with The Journal.
“We wanted this week to really highlight equity-deserving students’ experiences and connect with that dominant culture.”
The Shift Project began in response to equity-seeking students reporting they lacked community in the 2021 Student Experience Survey. The week’s events included consent trivia and a market.
For McKenna, the celebration event on Thurs., March 16 is one of the most important events and was held to celebrate the equity-deserving students participating in equity work at Queen’s.
“We had just under 60 students register, which to me is substantial and shows there’s a desire to get together. It blew me out of the water.”
As a finale to Student Voices Week, the Shift Podcast is live recording an episode on the importance of male allyship at Queen’s.
“The Shift Podcast has been one of the initiatives that has been the most challenging for me personally, logistically, and also it’s been emotionally challenging to hear students’ stories,” McKenna said.
The live podcast is in Mitchell Hall on March 19. All students are encouraged to attend to take part in a conversation between a panel of male Queen’s students on how there can be a meaningful culture shift at Queen’s.
Tags
EDII, Mitchell Hall, Shift Project, Yellow House
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