Westfield State to Present ‘Conversation with Values Practitioners’ on Sept. 27
WESTFIELD — On Wednesday, Sept. 27, Westfield State University will host a “Conversation with Values Practitioners,” an evening dedicated to celebrating the work and life stories of individuals who, through the practice of values, build inclusive communities, inspire more equitable institutions, and contribute to a more just world.
Featured speakers include Janine Fondon, chair of Undergraduate Communications at Bay Path University and exhibit curator; Rhonda Anderson, an Iñupiaq-Athabascan woman from Alaska and commissioner on Indian Affairs in Western Mass.; and Ben Boyd, senior vice president of Global Communications at Peloton.
In bringing together community members across the diversity spectrum, including identity, thought, talent, and lived experience, the program will recognize and appreciate that identities are interconnected; celebrate the equity and inclusion efforts by faculty, staff, and students; and encourage opportunities for continued action.
Following the speaking program, the “Voices of Resilience” exhibit will be launched at Westfield State’s Arno Maris Gallery, on the second floor of the Ely Building. The display panels will showcase the stories of women and men who have worked to create change as well as untold narratives that reframe history. The exhibit will represent these achievements both visually and through inclusive storytelling. A panel is dedicated to Linda Thompson, president of the university.
The speaking program will run from 4:30 to 5:45 p.m. and take place in the Scanlon Banquet Hall, followed by the exhibit opening and its reception in the Arno Maris Gallery, which runs from 6 to 7 p.m. Both are free and open to the public.
Sponsors include the university’s Office of Human Resources, the Office of the President, the Values Working Group, the Ethnic and Gender Studies Department, and numerous collaborators throughout campus. External sponsors include the Massachusetts Cultural Council and Peloton.
