Category Archives: DEI

CHHS DEI Profile – Dr. Michael Dao

Dr. Michael DaoMichael Dao – Department of Kinesiology

What is your role in your department/school?

I am currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Kinesiology

What would you identify as one of the most significant actions you have taken to advance the cause for diversity either in the classroom, your community or your profession?

Probably my attention to include readings from different authorities that represent the diverse classrooms at SJSU. I am attentive to including writers of color, indigenous writers, and women in my syllabus to ensure that students are engaging with a wide variety of voices.

How have you integrated topics of DEI into hiring new faculty and/or admitting students?

I think from the Department of Kinesiology we are very conscious to ensure that our hiring practices are underpinned by DEI initiatives such as highlighting DEI research and teaching from potential candidates and also making sure or job postings are posted on DEI websites

Tell us about how you and why you became attentive to DEI topics. What prompted this change in your department/school?  What did the process look like?

I became attentive as I grew up and became more engaged with critical discussions. I just came to the conclusion that there were historical, social, and systemic reasons for the inequities people face. As such, the university is a good place to start having more conversations to better dismantle these unjust institutions that we work and exist. I find that more departments are slowly realizing our role in the inequities that people face so it’s down to us to start pushing the needle a little. The process is an ongoing one but at least we have more awareness and pay more attention to the topics.

What support did you need to make it happen?  Did you draw on existing resources or examples that were helpful in guiding your change?

Institutional support is key. Having support from your department chair makes it easy to bring up difficult conversations that not all people are ready to engage with. I didn’t really draw from existing resources but I have drawn from the CEED committee and people in the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

Tell us one book, one article, one documentary, or one movie you’ve read or watched that you would like to suggest to others that helped shape your thinking about DEI work.

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

CHHS DEI Profile – Dr. Shaum Bhagat

Dr. Shaum BhagatShaum Bhagat – Department of Audiology 

What is your role in your department/school?

My role is Professor and Department Chair for the Department of Audiology.

What would you identify as one of the most significant actions you have taken to advance the cause for diversity either in the classroom, your community, or your profession?

The most significant actions I have taken to advance the cause of diversity include participating in mentorship opportunities for a diverse group of young people interested in the professions of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology. Through these opportunities, I have met young people and provided guidance concerning future careers in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology. I have also been fortunate in having the opportunity to serve as a faculty mentor for students conducting Doctor of Audiology research projects. These opportunities have allowed me to listen and learn from young people interested in our professions, and have been instrumental in shaping my thinking concerning the importance of DEI in the higher education environment.

How have you integrated topics of DEI into hiring new faculty and/or admitting students?

In our department mission statement, we indicate that graduates of our program will be ethical, culturally sensitive, and committed to evidence-based practices. In order to help our students achieve these goals that are a necessity for professional practices in the 21st century, we must integrate DEI topics in recruiting both students and faculty. I have also been influenced by the CHHS mission statement concerning promoting health equity and social justice.  I have contributed to a team-based approach of developing our program using DEI principles in order to provide a welcoming environment for diverse faculty members and students.

Tell us about how and why you became attentive to DEI topics.

As a child from a middle-class family with an immigrant heritage from South Asia, my experiences and those of my family members allowed me to realize that there are health inequities and social injustices that need to be addressed, and it is imperative that solutions are created for these social problems. I believe that there should be equal opportunities for all people to access health care.

Tell us one book, one article, one documentary, or one movie you’ve read or watched that you would like to suggest to others that helped shape your thinking about DEI work. 

If I were to have only one choice, it would be “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The passages from the letter that are particularly inspiring for me include “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”  These words are at the heart of my personal philosophy and remind me that there is much work to be done that requires direct action.

CHHS DEI Profile – Dr. Asha Thomas

Dr. Asha ThomasDr. Asha Thomas – School of Social Work

What is your role in your department/school?

I am the School Coordinator, Undergraduate and Graduate On-Campus advisor at the School of Social Work

What would you identify as one of the most significant actions you have taken to advance the cause for diversity either in the classroom, your community or your profession?

I believe that my strongest and salient contribution to diversity in my profession occurred when I, as a faculty member in a mid-western university, led a group of graduate students to study and work in India. Most of my graduate students participating in the program had not lived or worked in a developing nation.  The primary challenge for the participants was to negotiate cultural differences and barriers. The program also required them to do intense field work in community settings. During the earlier phases of the program, students relied on my help to interpret the complex and unfamiliar Indian culture. The discomfort and vulnerability created by the unfamiliar provided a golden opportunity for the group to reflect on complex issues related to race, LGBTQ rights, economic oppression, political participation etc. Students were able to discuss issues of social justice and marginalization within a comparative framework – India and the US.  I introduced both experiential learning and course-readings on LGBTQ rights, race and housing rights, and the fight for wage equality. Student have provided strong feedback about the inclusiveness of the program and the rich learnings about Indian culture, social structure and politics. In fact, this year I was asked to lead the program again.

How have you integrated topics of DEI into hiring new faculty and/or admitting students?

The School of Social work pays close and careful attention to topics of DEI in our admission process. Prospective applicants are introduced to our Transcultural Perspective during the admission’s informational session. Videos and other material on the TCP are available on the admissions page. Applicants are asked to reflect on various aspects of the TCP in their personal statement.

During the admission review process, the admission committee evaluates the applicants’ responses to the salient aspects of the TCP framework. The TCP emphasizes the importance of culture in social work at all levels of practice; understanding dynamics of power, privilege, and oppression; maintaining an awareness of one’s own cultural perspectives, values, and beliefs; and demonstrating respect in interactions within, among, and between systems. Specifically, the Committee reads for the applicant’s understanding and experiences with diversity and cultural humility in all areas pertaining to social work practice.

Tell us about how you and why you became attentive to DEI topics. What prompted this change in your department/school?  What did the process look like?

This is an interesting question because my response to this might sound cliched. I grew up in India—that sentence right there answers the how and why. The theoretical lens to understand issues of DEI came during my social work training in India (although we never quite used this term—at that time it was oppression and social justice). Our curriculum was strongly focused on Marxism and social justice. The ability to work on the topic during decades long practice with some of the most marginalized communities in India. The work was intense, hard and demanded considerable grit and patience. This led to a doctoral dissertation focused on social movements, the Indian state and tribal rights.

What support did you need to make it happen?  Did you draw on existing resources or examples that were helpful in guiding your change?

I have relied on the support of my colleagues and mentors in this work. Most of my experiences were based on a political rights /community approach to social work. In the US, particularly teaching social work was challenging, and the learning curve was steep. Here the focus is more on individual aspects of identity, and social work tends to focus on what we call micro or mezzo systems. In the School of Social Work, we have strong leadership and commitment to DEI related work.

Tell us one book, one article, one documentary, or once movie you’ve read or watched that you would like to suggest to others that helped shape your thinking about DEI work.

I am not sure if I can call it a DEI book, but a book that shaped my understanding of Civil Rights (and the fight for political inclusion) in the US is “Poor People’s Movements: Why they Succeed and How they Fail” by Piven and Cloward. This book helped me understand the immense potential of community action and organizing to bring about change. It is also a valuable account of the welfare rights movement in the US. Yet, it also cautions the social worker that real change is hard to win and sustain. Clearly, a valuable lesson for everyone that is working in the frontlines of DEI.

CHHS DEI Profile – Bree Casas

Bree CasasBree Casas – The Valley Foundation School of Nursing 

What is your role in your department/school?

I currently am a Senior Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing student. I serve as the President of Public Health Nursing Club; the President of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and Student Nurses of Color (BILSNOC); and I serve on the SJSU and State Board of California Nursing Students Association with a goal of promoting DEI and representation for nursing students of color.

What would you identify as one of the most significant actions you have taken to advance the cause for diversity either in the classroom, your community or your profession?

On a large scale, I was recently invited to speak at the National Student Nurses’ Association Convention in Utah (April 2022) on DEI and nursing recruitment for students of color, and I could not be prouder to represent our university and state! On a more local level, at SJSU, my nursing mentee (An Huynh) and I  decided to take a leap at the beginning of the school year with the guidance of Dr. Sheri Rickman-Patrick to start BILSNOC, although we are a small group, those of us that are committed continue to hold a community space for BIPOC Nursing students. I think I have had amazing peers that have been committed to advocating alongside me, which keeps me motivated.

How have you integrated topics of DEI into hiring new faculty and/or admitting students?

Something I have personally discussed and advocated for within our nursing program since my first semester in the program is utilizing a multicriteria selection process that evaluates student potential holistically rather than solely on academic achievement. I know there is a lot of work to be done, but this is a significant reason why I hope to remain involved in academia throughout my career, to ensure our underrepresented students have an equitable chance.

Tell us about how you and why you became attentive to DEI topics. What prompted this change in your department/school?  What did the process look like?

I actually have a B.A. in Sociology from another university and feel that a large part of understanding myself and the many realms I exist within has been through the lens of intersectionality. I think during my time at SJSU it was really the uprising in the Summer of 2020 when George Floyd was murdered and many other BLM protests were arising, that a group of about five students and I collaborated on a list of changes we wanted the nursing administration to implement into curriculum. We discussed this over the span of a few meetings, but change sometimes can be a process when others in positions of leadership may not be ready to implement changes. And when the change didn’t occur at the pace we were comfortable with, a classmate (Lilian Anh) and I decided to implement informal surveys to ask students if they felt they were receiving culturally-informed education.

What support did you need to make it happen?  Did you draw on existing resources or examples that were helpful in guiding your change?

Truly it has been our faculty of color, specifically Black women, that support these causes the most deeply. I am endlessly grateful for the extra time and effort they put into making our university and nursing program a better place (specifically Dr. Michelle DeCoux Hampton, Dr. Sheri Rickman-Patrick, and Dr. Denise Dawkins). At the same time, we need more folks that are allies to engage in this work with us, because this work is taxing especially for BIPOC students and faculty.

Tell us one book, one article, one documentary, or once movie you’ve read or watched that you would like to suggest to others that helped shape your thinking about DEI work.

I would say Punished by Victor Rios and The Autobiography of Malcolm X as Told to Alex Haley by Malcolm X

CHHS DEI Profile – Dr. Melisa Kaye

Dr. Melisa Kaye, Occupational TherapyDr. Melisa Kaye – Department of Occupational Therapy 

What is your role in your department/school?

I am an assistant professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy

What would you identify as one of the most significant actions you have taken to advance the cause for diversity either in the classroom, your community or your profession? 

I came out. To my colleagues, my clients, and now to my students. I realize that in 2022, an era where we can engage in entire programs of queer study at a university level, this may not seem like a revolutionary act. In the 70s however, coming out was an enormous political and personal decision. I was beaten up, harassed, and ostracized from family and community because I was a lesbian. LGBTQ people were publicly despised and discriminated against and basic freedoms were denied to us. As a new occupational therapist in the 90s, I realized LGBTQ folks were not represented in research or in practice– coming out was terrifying because the professional stakes were so high. I was especially reluctant to come out because I worked with children and was not sure how my client’s families or my colleagues would react.

I have no need or desire to tell everyone in my work world that I am queer, but I do not want to be forced to hide my identity either. As an aspect of holding healthy boundaries, I pragmatically reveal my sexual orientation and identity in the service of teaching and professional practice only. I do not want to proclaim, “I’m queer” to everyone I meet, yet in the context of my life and my job, it is important for me to stand up and assert my right to exist. This in turn means that I stand up for my LGBTQ colleagues, clients and students. By extension, it means that I demand, to the best of my ability, that LGBTQ people have the same protections, safety, opportunity, and justice as het and cis gender folks.

I understand that queer can be a hidden aspect of diversity, whereas race is often immediately evident to others. Being able to choose whether to come out affords me privilege. It also makes me prey to my own internalized homophobia. I understand and respect that privilege, so although being LGBTQ offers me certain insights into DEI work, I would not presume equate my experiences with sexual orientation with race, ethnicity, or other diversities. I think a source of power of the DEI work many of us are currently doing is the unity that builds through mutual respect of our differences and our common aims.

How have you integrated topics of DEI into hiring new faculty and/or admitting students?

Neither hiring nor student admission are included in my responsibilities right now because I am a relatively new faculty member. The area I have worked on and continue to address is honoring and integrating DEI into our curricula. I am committed to increasing the richness of my students’ experiences in my classes and to engendering cultural humility as these students prepare for entry level practice.

Tell us about how you and why you became attentive to DEI topics. What prompted this change in your department/school?  What did the process look like?

I have been steeped in issues surrounding justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion since I was a child. My mother was very active in the civil rights movement, as well as the women’s rights and disability rights movements. She was also deeply involved in worker’s rights and labor unionization. One of my first memories was being with my mom at an anti-war rally in Detroit, MI in the late 60s. We heard Angela Davis and Bobby Seale speak. I was so awed by what little I understood of the messages and also by the energy. Then, the police came in riot gear and started tear gassing the crowd. My mom was in a wheelchair and I climbed onto her lap so she could speed us through the square to get out of the gas. I was terrified and amazed, and I remember talking about it with her for a long, long time– it shaped a lot of the beliefs and perspectives I still hold today.

I, myself, have been politically active since I was a teenager. First in women’s rights and then in AIDS politics, LGBT rights, same sex marriage equality, and now as an ally in Black Lives Matter and DEI organizations. Being an occupational therapist, I am also a disability rights advocate and ally. I was active with ACT-UP and Queer Nation and then worked on the Prop 8 (same sex marriage legislation) campaign. I helped found a neighborhood political action organization in my community in 2016 after the presidential election. In sum, I have not changed who I am, I simply started integrating the work I was already doing in my communities into my roles at SJSU.

What support did you need to make it happen?  Did you draw on existing resources or examples that were helpful in guiding your change?

Perhaps the greatest influence on my decision to start doing DEI work at SJSU came from a process of de-compartmentalizing my life. In 2020 when I joined SJSU as tenure track faculty member, the world felt like it was going up in flames. We had just endured four years of a political regime that publicly sanctioned sexism, racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, ableism, and racially driven police brutality. Truth came under attack and became an easily assailable concept. COVID-19 was in full swing and our communities were in lockdown. I decided that for my own wellbeing, as well as that of my SJSU community, I wanted to do my part to be in the solution rather than succumbing to despair amidst all our many injustices and hardships.

As a means of recognizing my students’ experiences, I started by bringing current events to light in my classes. In my position, I am always conscious of not engaging in politics, yet for young adults who may never have experienced widespread injustice, it was vital to give voice to these historic issues. I remember when the spate of anti-Asian violence started and I knew I needed to acknowledge my students’ outrage and fear. I do not believe I can effectively teach if my students are not psychologically and emotionally available to learn, so the decision was driven by necessity.

I wanted to continue my work, so I applied for and was accepted to be an Affinity Mentor for Academic Success (AMAS). For the past year, I have shared my experience and worked with diverse students entering master’s programs at SJSU. I also joined CEED in Fall 2021, and got involved in DEI issues on a college level. Early on, I was introduced to the CEED needs assessment report to the college. The findings indicated that the formation of departmental DEI committees was a key action item. I brought this info back to my department, and our OT DEI committee was founded. Although we are in our infancy, the committee is up and running, which is fantastic. We balanced our membership between faculty/staff and students, and the students bring such vibrance and energy to the table. It’s an honor to be in conversation with colleagues and students, and to be working on these issues for my department, our college, SJSU, and my profession.

Tell us one book, one article, one documentary, or once movie you’ve read or watched that you would like to suggest to others that helped shape your thinking about DEI work. 

Ijeoma Oluo’s book So You Want to Talk About Race was a great book because it gave voice not only to deconstructing the myriad problems facing our country with regard to race, but also to actions that BIPOC people and white allies can take to effect change.