Community Conference Breakout Sessions

2021 Breakout Sessions

Click the links to see details.

Session Details

1-1  "We Walk" Social Justice Through Dance (space is limited)

Presenters: Anna Haney ’11, Alverno College and ADA Senior Modern Company Dancers 

Join Alverno’s own dance instructor Anna Hany for an interactive workshop where you will view, discuss and learn part of her new contemporary dance work, “We Walk.”  “We Walk” was created in response to the past year’s events surrounding racial injustice and the need for change with our community.  The work was created in collaboration with Academy of Dance Arts in Brown Deer, WI’s Senior Modern Company dancers.  Participants need no prior dance experience.  Clothing that you can move in an 8x8 space is recommended. (Back to top)

1-2  LGBTQ+ Community and Health Equity 

Presenters: Jennifer Jarvey Balistreri ‘15, Alverno College, Advocate Aurora Health and Jessica Langill ‘15, Rogers Behavioral Health

Have you wondered how different health care looks and feels for LGBTQ+ community members and patients? In this section we will discuss: LGBTQ+ health disparities, access to care, the need for inclusive treatment, social health support, biases within navigating and providing care, and behavioral health support. Presenters are both Alverno College alumnae with current roles in Public Health, Community Outreach, Alverno College Social Science Faculty and Behavioral Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Coordination. (Back to top)

1-3  Cultivating Female Leaders 

Presenter: Jennifer Ott, Jennifer Ott Consulting

This keynote discusses the roles and responsibilities of men in leadership to cultivate female leaders in male dominated industries.  While women continue to make strides in achieving high levels of leadership, it is still a male dominated area that must change.  It is incumbent upon those highest ranking decision makers to identify gender bias in executive leadership and create awareness of genderless, effective leadership traits. (Back to top)

1-4  Achieving Racial Equity & Health in Milwaukee 

Presenter: Jeff Roman, Office on African American Affairs, Milwaukee County

This session will share Milwaukee County's approach to dismantle racism to ensure just and fair inclusion of people of color in all aspects of society. This is an informative and interactive workshop that will engage in discussion by Jeff Roman and the participants. Please come prepared to have important and vulnerable conversations about racism. (Back to top)

1-5  Confederate Monuments: Melt, Sink or Contextualize?

Presenter: Eileen Booth, Alverno College

Confederate Monuments are problematic to say the least. Nevertheless, they exist as part of our nation’s public art inventory. For many, they are a painful reminder of slavery and everything that divides a country.  Others defend problematic sculptures, claiming removing such monuments erases history. There is no one solution for all problematic monuments and memorials, but I’ll equip you with the tools to analyze and critique Confederate monuments on a contextual basis.  Join me, an Alverno Art History instructor, as we unpack case studies of Confederate memorials and come up with some productive solutions for how to handle them. (Back to top) 

1-6  You Have Power; Are You Using It? 

Presenter: Lisa Attonito, Women’s Fund of Greater Milwaukee

We know what needs to change so society is more inclusive and equitable, yet we often feel powerless.  Come ready to discuss the power you do have to influence activities, services, programs etc. in our community.  Your engagement means we have a more inclusive, equitable community and everyone thieves. This is an interactive experience for participants. Using a brief and simple survey as the framework, the resulting discussion brings light to the power we all have at our finger tips and on our lips.  Be a part of the change we all want now. (Back to top) 

1-7  Black Women and Access: Technology, Healthcare, Education and Beyond 

Presenters: Angela Harris, Milwaukee Public Schools, Candace Hill, RN '16, formerly with Chicago Public Health Department, and Mira Story, Alverno College student

While all have suffered disruption and tragedy through the events of the past year, the Covid-19 crisis exposed and exacerbated pre-existing inequities in our society. These inequities became especially evident in terms of access to technology, healthcare, and education, especially for Black women and their families. In this session, Black educators, students, and healthcare workers will discuss how the pandemic and associated social changes (lockdowns etc.) forced greater reliance on technology that further limited their communities’ ability to access even basic services and rights. (Back to top)

1-8  How Minimalism is Not Exclusive 

Presenter: Marina Thao ‘18 

When you think of minimalism, you may think of tranquil monks, on-the-move vagabonds, living in a tiny home or even famous people like Marie Kondo who created a decluttering method and Steve Jobs who typically wears a black turtleneck and jeans. This session will prove that minimalism is for everyone. In this session, you will learn about how to be intentional with incorporating minimalistic practices. You will learn how minimalism can improve your everyday life by helping you save more money and have more time for yourself and loved ones. In a world where everything is fast-paced, consumerism is on the rise and having more equates to being more, minimalism can enhance your life by cutting out the extras. (Back to top)

2-1 TRUE Knowledge: The Power of Hip Hop Culture

Presenter: Fidel Verdin, TRUE Skool

This workshop provides an excellent foundation to understanding the history of Hip Hop Culture and how it has become the multi-billion dollar industry today. We trace the historical ties to the civil rights movements, 1970s and telling the story of urban youth who were lacking in opportunities and community resources. We’ll also talk about how resources were created and focus on the positive outlets by creating the "elements" of Hip Hop. Hop culture was and still is about "creating something out of nothing". (Back to top)

2-2 The Impact of COVID-19 on Marginal Communities 

Presenter: Danell Cross, Metcalfe Park Community Bridges, Inc.

According to the April 2020 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Center for Economic Development report that analyzed the early stages of COVID-19 spread in Milwaukee County, “stark inequalities are emerging along racial and economic lines” that further "raise the prospect of a pronounced racial and ethical crisis.” We invite you to come learn about the initiatives Metcalfe Park Community Bridges has launched over the past year to combat the public health crisis that has arisen throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn how they came together to address health, disparities in food, housing and safety to promote cohesiveness within their community. (Back to top) 

2-3 How to Incorporate “Equity Diversity and Inclusion” in Small Groups and Every Day Interactions 

Presenters: TBD (PEARLS Programming staff)

At PEARLS, DEI is simply our mode of operation. We want to break down these big buzz words and show you how we incorporate these principles every day in pursuit of empowering women and girls from all walks of life to blossom into their best selves and pursue their vision of success. Join us for a PEARLS group session in learning how we bring girls together, zealously celebrate their differences and open their minds and hearts along the way. (Back to top)

2-4 Exploring Ableism, Disability Identity, and Disability Justice (space is limited) 

Presenters: Colleen Barnett, Sue Mente and Megan White, Alverno College

Using the documentary "Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution" as a prompt, participants will explore the experience of those living with a disability in our society and how social movements bring about change. Participants will be expected to view the film in advance, prior to the session. The film is 1 hour and 48 minutes in length and is available through a Netflix subscription or free through YouTube. This session is interactive and educational based off the documentary. (Back to top)

2-5 The "Token" Black Woman 

Presenter: Roshena Lindsey

Black women struggle in different ways than white women. As a black woman Roshena has spent her life changing the narrative placed upon me by the majority.  The statement, “token” black person, has been used in various social contexts and has been a difficult title to endure growing up. Her background is “typical” from the majority but it is a determination that has helped Roshena become a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner. She will present the concept of tokenism being a negative connotation but how it’s perceived by the black female professional. This is an educational session on how to encourage women of color to excel and move past the stereotypes put upon them by the majority. (Back to top)

2-6 Call and Response at the Lynden Sculpture Garden: Extending the Imaginary through Co-Creation 

Presenters: Jon Little, Alverno College and Dr. Rina Little, Texas Tech University

Spaces are not merely containers for social relations but are produced through social and material practices that organize, build, and imagine our surroundings. The Lynden Sculpture Garden’s Call and Response Program (CRP) conceptualizes space as a location through which movements, interactions, materials, communications, and affects create knowing. The CRP is a space and practice that gathers together a community of artists working across disciplines who are committed to the radical Black imagination. This is a space of wonder, of cultivation, of healing, of collective freedom. The program hopes to re-examine the past and propose a future that actively addresses citizenship and belonging by using form and content (Lynden Sculpture Garden “Call and Response”). (Back to top)

2-7 It Ain't Easy Being a Man Either: Transcending Fear-Based Movements 

Presenter: Deborah Lukovich, PhD, allinea, LLC

We are witnessing the dismantling of patriarchy, and it isn't pretty. There are plenty of wounds to go around. Real community building requires walking a mile in someone else’s shoes, even if you think your wound is bigger. Understanding the root of something is not the same as excusing bad behavior. Many good men are suffering in silence, not feeling they have a right to say they have their own wounds. Men and women together are redefining what it means to be a human being. It’s not until women transcend their fear of patriarchy and is then projected onto individual men by remembering their true power and accelerate the emergence of being human. (Back to top)

2-8 Fostering Diversity & Inclusion in Artificial Intelligence Development for the Global Commons 

Presenter: Quentin Jackson, Alverno College, Meridian Global Education

This session presents a challenge to participants to add their voice, values, and actions to the importance of assuring a strong regimen of global diversity and inclusion. This is embedded through the development of artificial intelligence systems (A.I.). Participants will understand how – for select communities – a forever exclusion from a resource rich future will certainly occur if there is not a fully diverse and inclusive engagement in the development of A.I. systems. (Back to top)

2-9 Using a Health Equity Lens to Understand the Neonatal Experience 

Presenters: Ashlee Vance and Annella Benjamin, University of Michigan

The purpose of this presentation will be to discuss current evidence regarding health disparities, describe the impact of policy decisions on parent experience, and discuss strategies to improve health outcomes for neonates and their families. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, parental presence was encouraged through unrestricted visitation and family-centered care practices in neonatal intensive care units (NICU). Parental caregiving is essential to an infant’s healthy development, especially during hospitalization. (Back to top)