elmsnews

DECEMBER 2024

STUDENT AFFAIRS

The Student Affairs Division held their annual Christmas Toy Drive, where all donations recently were brought to both The Gray House and Homework House and will be distributed to more than 1,000 children locally. 

We are incredibly appreciative of the kindness shown through your donations, and hope that this Holiday Season can be made warmer knowing the joy you have helped bring to so many local families this Christmas. Thank you for, once again, helping to live out the values of our founders, the Sisters of St. Joseph, by responding to the needs of our community. 

Wishing you Happy Holidays!

ACADEMIC AFFAIRS

On October 24th, Assistant Professor of Data Science Stephen Walsh, hosted a workshop held at Elms College entitled "Data-Driven Decisions: Power of AI In Today's Market" presented by Tushar Chopra who works in Applied AI at CVS. The workshop went over how to analyze and predict sales data in Microsoft Excel and talked about the ways data science and AI are growing in popularity in many different sectors, so these skills are useful to our students as they seek employment after graduation.  

6th Annual Reverend Hugh F. Crean Distinguished Lecture in Catholic Thought

Guest Lecturer: Rev. Joseph Cheah, OSM, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies, University of Saint Joseph

"Anti-Asian Racism and Catholic Social Teaching"

Monday, March 24, 2025

4:30 p.m.-6 p.m.

Elms College Alumnae Library Theater

REGISTER HERE

This lecture aims to address a critical gap in the Catholic Church's pastoral discourse on anti-Asian racism, as evidenced in documents like Open Wide Our Hearts and Encountering Christ in Harmony. These texts, while significant, lack a robust engagement with the racialized experiences of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). By focusing on the intersection of anti-Asian hate and Catholic Social Teaching (CST), the lecture seeks to deepen the Church's understanding of racial justice through the lens of AAPI experiences.

Speaker Biography

Joseph Cheah, OSM, Ph.D. is Professor of Religious Studies and Theology, and Chair of the Department of Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies. In the classroom, he sees himself as a co-learner, someone who collaborates with students for insight and understanding. Telling pertinent stories and sharing appropriate experiences from his unique social location as Asian American and positionality as religious priest have helped him to reclaim teaching and learning as an essential part of faculty-student dialogue.

Fr. Joe has made robust contributions in the fields of Asian American religions and theology, Buddhist Studies, World Christianity, race and religion. He is the author of Race and Religion in American Buddhism (OUP, 2011) which is the first monograph to take race seriously as a category of analysis in American Buddhist scholarship (Brooke Schedneck) and “stands to transform the discourse on American Buddhism and Asian American religions in significant and much needed ways” (Sharon Suh). His recent book Anti-Asian Racism (Orbis, 2023) has been reviewed as “an exceptional book … on the genealogy and variants of anti-Asian racism in the U.S.” (Thomas Hampton) and “a must-read for all Americans” (Peter Phan). He is a co-editor on the Palgrave Macmillan series, “Asian Christianity in Diaspora” with Grace Ji-Sun Kim, with whom he co-authored a book on Theological Reflections on “Gangnam Style.” In recognition of his record of exceptional scholarship, the University in 2018 awarded him with the Sister Mary Ellen Murphy Faculty Scholarship Award.

He has been an invited speaker on anti-Asian racism, Catholic Social Teaching, and other topics to audiences at diverse educational levels across the country. He was part of Asian American Christian Collaborative delegates invited to a White House meeting to address central issues faced by Asian American communities. 

SPRING 2025 ART EVENTS

“Ways of My Ancestors - We are Still Here”

Location: Borgia Gallery

Exhibition Dates: January 22 2025- Feb 28 2025

This exhibition is created by photographer Scott Strong Hawk Foster. Foster is a local Black and Nipmuc artist. This exhibition documents Nipmuc people and culture.

Scott Strong Hawk Foster Artist Talk: Tuesday, February 25, 11:00-12:00 in the Borgia Gallery. All are welcome!

Opening Reception: Tuesday, February 25, 12:15-1:15, Refreshments served and all are welcome!

Gallery Closed for Installation: March 3-7:

Spring Break: March 10-14

“For a Pair o Wings”

Location: Borgia Gallery

Exhibition Dates: March 17- April 18

Opening Reception Date: March 27, 12:15-1:15

This exhibition is a retrospective exhibition by Hannah Hurricane about motherhood, the environment and birds. Hannah Hurricane has degrees in Environmental Science and Fine Arts. She divides her time between Florida and Texas

Gallery Closed for Installation: April 21- April 30

Please drop off student artworks in the gallery, April 21- April 30. All student work is welcome!

“Student Art Exhibition”: Borgia and Well Gallery

Exhibition Dates: Thursday May 1- May 19th

Opening Reception: Thursday May 1, 12:15-1:15

Center for Equity in Urban Education: Fall 2024 Highlights

Community Engagement: Dr. Tyra Good was on the planning committee for the Western Massachusetts Diversifying the Educator Workforce Summit and also moderated the dynamic panel discussion that was held on October 5th. The CEUE scholars connected with De’Shawn Washington, Massachusetts Teacher of the Year, and other educators across the region who are focused on  diversifying the educator workforce.

Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy: Dr. Good and Dominique McDonald attended the Condition of Education in Western Massachusetts event at the Delaney House in Holyoke. The featured speakers included Patrick Tutwiler, Massachusetts Secretary of Education and Dr. Sonia Dinnall, Springfield Public Schools Superintendent.

CEUE Graduates: During the November Harambee, we honored the eight Fall 2024 CEUE graduates. Three undergraduate scholars and five graduate scholars will receive their degrees and initial teaching licenses. President Dumay and Dr. Hampton stopped by to personally congratulate them and their families.

Western Massachusetts Literacy Collaborative (WMLC): The CEUE and the Education Division successfully completed the second summer of the WMLC Learn & Earn Literacy Corps. Thirty-six college students from Elms College, American International College (AIC), and Westfield State University attended a week-long culturally responsive professional development training at Elms College. They also worked in local school districts to provide literacy interventions to the PK-12 students attending summer school in local urban school districts. Of the thirty-six students twenty-three were from Elms College and twelve were CEUE students.

W. K. Kellogg Foundation Site Visit:

Dr. Sakinah Harrison, Program Officer at the Kellogg Foundation, visited Elms College for an engaging meeting to discuss the updates and progress of the CEUE. The financial support from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation has been instrumental in advancing the interdisciplinary work of the Center by providing scholarship support, MTEL coaching and support, and funding for culturally-responsive and anti-racist professional development.

Global Education Initiative: Dr. Good serves as the Global Education Chair for Trimm Global Charities and leads a team in providing academic support and career mentorship to school-aged children and young adults in Nairobi, Kenya. The support and mentorship discussions center around equitable ways to advance quality education in alignment with the G.R.E.E.T. Change model and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

African American Female Professor Award Association (AAFPAA): Elms College hosted the 8th AAFPAA Celebration. The AAFPAA believes that creating a multicultural faculty will build a healthy, stable, and all-encompassing learning atmosphere and honors African American female professors annually. They work with college leadership, deans, and provosts to ensure the college experience is fair for both students and faculty.

Publication Release: Dr. Tyra Good wrote a chapter in the newly released book, The Essence of a Woman: Unleash the Feminine Soul. Her chapter is entitled, My #GOOD and Lasting Healing and highlights key concepts from her Trauma Informed Advocacy in Urban Education course.

Presidential Award: Dr. Good was awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award, which honors individuals whose service positively impacts communities in every corner of the nation and inspires those around them to also take action to make a difference in the world. She received a letter from President Joe Biden, a certificate, and a Gold Medallion, which is the highest honor, to recognize her commitment to national and global service to advance and work towards eliminating educational injustices.

Speaking Engagements: Dr. Good was an invited guest speaker on three national platforms this semester to talk about her professional and academic pursuits of creating culturally responsive equitable learning ecosystems. These opportunities included: Talk Business to Me Live Series, Be Healthy in a Hurry!, Great American Teach-In (GATI).

HUMAN RESOURCES

Elms College Employment Opportunities as of December 13, 2024

Applications are now being accepted for the positions listed below.  Anyone interested in making a formal application should go to the Employment page on the Elms College website for a detailed job description and how to apply: www.elms.edu/employment 

Among the procedures which may be used to select personnel to fill vacant positions are a review of work experiences, qualifications, degrees/licensures/certifications, and employment interviews.  This listing pertains to all current staff and faculty job vacancies at the College.  

Elms College is committed to a policy of equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, disability, military status, or genetic information in employment. It is the policy of Elms College to comply with applicable federal and state statutes, rules, and regulations concerning equal opportunity.