Diversity and Inclusion has been on the English Department’s mind recently. As we dive deeper into issues that our collective community faces, it’s easy to see how our interaction with these issues can shape our education, and shape the way we interact with each other. Earlier this academic year, the English Department hosted the Global Cultures Conference, in honor of our emerita faculty member SunHee Gertz, which featured talks on all aspects of diversity and inclusion, from diversity in lighting in architecture, to racial issues in contemporary Turkey.

Three Clarkies have also been working tirelessly to create a new anthology on this very subject, which was recently published. Professor Emerita SunHee Gertz, Professor Betsy Huang, and PhD candidate Lauren Cyr have recently published Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education and Societal Contexts: International and Interdisciplinary Approaches, an anthology of essays, which includes essays from Clark professors Esther Jones and Esteban Cardemil. The essays in this anthology not only take up the important topic of diversity and inclusion, but the ways in which to implement and oversee it in different contexts.

​The anthology begins with a word from its editors on the political need for this discussion. As the political climate of our society has normalized xenophobia and discrimination, this anthology and the essays in it provide clear ideas on fighting that acceptance, and stimulate discussion in our own communities. As we contend with our own biases and understanding, this anthology can be a useful tool to see other views and ideas on the subject.

​Congratulations to the editors of this fascinating new anthology, which can be found on display at Anderson House. This anthology challenges us all to confront these issues head on.