Monday, November 5, 2007

The heart of it all: stop, listen, learn, & be inspired

A couple of weeks ago I flew into a tornado in the middle of Kansas. Though the "severe, large tornado" was my reason for traveling to Emporia, Kansas, it sure makes a good beginning to a story when you can use this quote, see your small town destination on a CNN weather map, and bump your way through 30 minutes of white knuckle turbulence.
And then there are the Wizard of Oz jokes, which flow out of my mouth like my random, gossipy banter...
So why was I there? Last spring I was fortunate enough to be asked to be a mentor for a library science grad student who had been given an Emporia Diversity Initiative (EDI) scholarship. Recognizing that the statistics show that the profession has some work to do if the people who work in libraries actually meet the needs of their increasingly diverse populations, EDI is designed to recruit, educate, and provide professional support for minority librarians in Kansas, Colorado and Oregon. It is a "3-year long (2006-2009), multi-partner project led by Emporia State University's (ESU) School of Library and Information Management (SLIM), to recruit and educate local minority library staff in Kansas, Colorado and Oregon. The EDI is funded with $857,754 dollars as a part of the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Laura Bush 21 st Century Librarian Program awards of 2006." Lots of brochure lingo in that quote! (link to full "about" page)
As part of this program, all the mentors and EDI grad students were invited to ESU to attend a 1 1/2 day leadership and diversity institute. It's cliche to say it, but it really was intense. As usual, I arrived and left with lots of questions:
  • What is the role of a mentor?
  • What is the role of a white mentor with a minority student?
  • What will I never understand?
  • How do I deal with discomfort, fear, authenticity?
  • I have great intentions, but what am I doing?
On a practical & functional level, the EDI staff used the time to start gathering statistics, feedback, and information about the program & its progression. On a personal level, we all shared and shaped stories. And some of the stories came from a deep place inside these students that is full of pain, frustration, hope, gratitude, anxiety, fear, and any other emotion you can think to insert into this list. It is uncomfortable and it is difficult to listen, especially as someone who has the privilege of privilege. But as I flew home late on a Friday night, into a "severe, large rainstorm," mixed in with all the exhaustion and fatigue was a sense of pride. I was proud to have been asked, I was proud of the woman I mentor, I was proud of those who saw a gaping hole and pushed through to fill it.
As usual, I took copious notes, which can be found here in their somewhat rambling, rough form. If nothing else, it will tell you who was there and provide a few links I added as a bonus track to the google.doc file!
But it wasn't all deep intellectual and emotional...
On the touristy side, I had a few hours in Kansas City before flying home and did some speed sightseeing at the Country Club Plaza Mall, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, and the American Jazz Museum.

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