CILCE Offers Professional Development Workshop for Faculty, Staff on Developing Intercultural Competence

Faculty, staff and students who participate in community engagement and service-learning work typically come in contact with people from diverse cultural backgrounds. This is a tremendous benefit of experiential education, but can also pose challenges if they are not prepared for the experiences.

Beth Zemsky

Beth Zemsky

Faculty and staff who work with students engaged in community settings, or who just wish to become more comfortable working with diverse groups of students, are invited to participate in a professional development opportunity titled "Supporting Community Engagement and Service-Learning Through Developing Intercultural Competence." The workshop is sponsored by CILCE (the Center for Intercultural Learning and Community Engagement).

The workshop will be led by Beth Zemsky, M.A.Ed., L.I.C.S.W. She is adjunct faculty at the University of Minnesota and has 25 years experience working as a consultant, educator, community organizer, psychotherapist, and organizational leader. She has received strong reviews from UST faculty and staff after past workshops on this topic, which include both theoretical knowledge and practical applications.

During this workshop, participants will increase their knowledge regarding a development model of intercultural sensitivity and its application to college learning environments, increase their ability to better prepare and guide students in intercultural learning environments (particularly those in community settings), and learn to support positive learning and dialogue among groups of students.

Topics include:

  • Developing shared meaning: diversity, inclusion and cultural competency
  • Overview of Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS)
  • Application of DMIS to your teaching strategies and learning outcomes
  • Demonstration of experiential exercises to use with your students

This event will be held from 2 to 5 p.m. Friday, March 4.

To register, contact Katie Hunt, (651) 962-6800, by Wednesday, March 2. For more information contact Meghan Allen Eliason in CILCE, (651) 962-6805.