Suburban Mosaic: Harper's new DEI chief to focus on student achievement
Tamara Johnson, the incoming vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion for Harper College in Palatine, will help increase the college's focus on equity in student achievement.
"We are working on strengthening our outcomes (for students of color)," said Avis Proctor, Harper's first female and first African-American president. "I felt it needed to have that level of attention."
Johnson will start her job at Harper in July. She currently serves in a similar capacity at Adler University in Chicago. She previously was the vice chancellor for equity, diversity and inclusion and student affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, director of faculty diversity initiatives at the University of Chicago, and executive director of multicultural affairs at Northwestern University.
A former consultant with the Department of Veterans Affairs, Johnson has served on the advisory board for the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity and is a member of the National Planning Committee for the Faculty Women of Color in the Academy Conference. She also has taught at Argosy University, the Chicago School of Professional Psychology and Northwestern University.
Harper will open a new multicultural center on campus this fall and hire a center manager to work with Johnson. Officials are starting to work on programming for the center, Proctor said.
Harper's student population is about 49% white, roughly 29% Hispanic, about 13% Asian, 6% other, and 4% Black, according to fall 2020 data.
Growing Black farmers
The Young Black Agri-preneurs of Kane County, a program hosted by The Just Food Initiative of the Fox Valley, aims to educate participants about where food comes from, the components of healthy soil, farming history and entrepreneurship.
The Batavia-based nonprofit launched the program this spring in collaboration with Aurora-based nonprofit African American Men of Unity (AAMOU) to teach Black youth how to grow and sell their own food. Its goal is to train future Black farmers, who are underrepresented among Kane County's small farmers.
Ten students from AAMOU's Rites of Passage program were part of the inaugural class, which culminates with the youth planting individual gardens in EarthBoxes at Aurora homes during Memorial Day weekend. EarthBoxes are subirrigated planters designed to grow vegetables, herbs and fruit. Participants will receive their certificates of completion during an awards ceremony in September.
AAMOU helps empower underserved individuals and families with education, training and resources. Rites of Passage students are between 7 and 18 years old who receive guidance, structure and positive examples of leadership, manhood and appropriate behaviors in a group setting.
LGBTQ health
New legislation proposed in the Illinois House aims to combat discrimination and help doctors better meet the needs of LGBTQ patients.
House Bill 3170, sponsored by state Rep. Maura Hirschauer of Batavia, would mandate anti-bias training for health care professionals in Illinois.
It also would require doctors to complete a training program on implicit bias for license renewal. The training would include information on how to identify unconscious biases and misinformation, ways to reduce discrimination and stigma, and tips for communicating more effectively with people who identify as sexual minorities.
"Unfortunately, members of the LGBTQ community report experiencing bias and discriminatory treatment, and sometimes being denied care altogether due to their sexual orientation or gender identity," Hirschauer said in a news release. "Ongoing education and training for doctors will help them establish trust with their patients, treat them with respect and improve access to quality care."
Racism series
Public libraries in Aurora and Elgin, in partnership with Study Circles Illinois, will co-host a series of community dialogues on racism starting in June.
The series opens with "Let's Talk about Racism," 6:30 to 8 p.m. June 7, and "Let's Talk about Policing," 6:30 to 8 p.m. June 21, in room 125 of Santori Aurora Public Library, 101 S. River St. Sessions at Gail Borden Public Library in Elgin are yet to be announced.
Vincent Gaddis, professor of history at Benedictine University in Lisle, will moderate the discussion. Gaddis' writings and research focus on issues of race, class and social justice. He serves as chairman of the criminal justice committee of the DuPage NAACP, the advisory board of Northern Illinois Jobs with Justice, The African American Family Commission, and is an ordained minister at River Valley Community Church in Aurora. He has served on Illinois' African American Employment Advisory Council and Aurora's Human Relations Commission.
Register for the June 7 session at aurorapubliclibrary.org/event/5128593 and the June 21 session at aurorapubliclibrary.org/event/5128628.
For more information, call (630) 264-4145 or visit aurorapubliclibrary.org.
Black Muslim research
The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding is seeking applicants for an 18-month fellowship beginning this fall to conduct research and analysis centering on and uplifting Black Muslim experiences.
The fellow will be part of ISPU's research team. The selected candidate will conduct, publish, and share original scholarship, organize and lead discussions and equip changemakers with research. For more information, visit ispu.org/black-muslim-experiences-research-fellowship/.
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