Days of Dialogue examines role of change

On Thursday night and Friday, a group of students, faculty, and staff convened for the bi-annual Days of Dialogue Conference, which had a theme this year of “A Multifaceted Look at Change.”

The program, which also commemorated the fifth anniversary of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the 20th anniversary of the Intercultural Resource Center, included several speakers and focused heavily on small discussion sessions. These activities concentrated on exploring how various social, cultural, political and institutional constructs influence communities.

Thursday evening’s agenda consisted of remarks from Columbia staff members such as Melinda Aquino, interim associate dean of student affairs and senior assistant dean of multicultural affairs, and Kevin Shollenberger, CC and SEAS dean of student affairs and associate vice president for undergraduate life. Guest speakers included alumni Marcel Agüeros, CC ’96 and a National Science Foundation Astronomy and Astrophysics Fellow, and Stephen Duncombe, an associate professor at the Gallatin School and NYU, whose speech was titled, “What Changes with Obama? Interrogating the New Terrain.”

On Friday, attendees regrouped for the bulk of the conference, which opened with a speech from Mónica Byrne-Jiménez, CC ’88 and TC ’03, an assistant professor at Hofstra University and president of the Latino Alumni Association of Columbia University.

Terrell Winder, CC ’11 and student co-coordinator of the program found the speakers’ messages moving, praising them for “their insistence in continuing knowing yourself.”

According to an excerpt from an informational e-mail, the goal of the conference was “to create a safe space where participants can challenge themselves and others, view our potential impact beyond the Ivy League, explore the ways we all have agency to effect change.” Attendees say Days of Dialogue realized this goal.

“The whole point was to push people beyond their comfort zones,” Daniela Garcia, CC ’11 and the other student co-coordinator of the program, said. “I think we did succeed in bringing together groups that would usually remain separate.”

Attendees chose which workshops to attend, with options such as, “Responding to Anonymous Acts of Hate and Bias” and “Interfaith Coalition Building,” to name a few.

Garcia, an atheist, attended the interfaith dialogue led by Barnard/Columbia Hillel Rabbi David Almog. “It was challenging for me,” she said.
In these dialogues, Winder also found “listening to people talking to each other who usually wouldn’t” to be particularly rewarding.

The day—and conference—closed with a roundtable discussion on the theme of, “Where Do We Go from Here?: Continuing the Dialogue.”