On March 31 the Wayne State School of Social Work will bring together five diversity experts to explore solutions for advancing racial justice in the wake of increased violence, police use of force, and unrest on college campuses.

The free afternoon program will begin at 1 p.m. in the university's Community Arts Auditorium, where John H. Jackson, president and CEO of the Cambridge, Mass.-based Schott Foundation for Public Education, will deliver the 10^th Annual Diversity Lecture on the topic "Advancing Racial Justice In Our Communities: Organizing Together For Racial Justice." The lecture will conclude at 3 p.m., at which time Jackson will continue a discussion of racial justice at Alumni House with a panel composed of Leonard Savala, director of the WSU Office of Multicultural Student Engagement, Mark Jackson, director of Wayne State's APEX Scholars, and Blanche Cook, assistant professor at Wayne Law School. The panel discussion will be moderated by Marquita Chamblee, Wayne State associate provost for diversity and inclusion and chief diversity officer.

As part of the Diversity Lecture's focus, Jackson will explore how bias and prejudice develop and become structured into institutions and systems, describe how stereotypes inform implicit biases that in turn impact social interactions, and discuss strategies for having candid conversations about these issues. With a law degree from University of Illinois and a Doctorate of Education in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy from Harvard, Jackson has served as chief policy officer and director of education for the NAACP, as senior policy advisor in the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education, and as an education policy advisor on the Obama-Biden transition team.

"With students from 60 nations and nearly every culture, Wayne State is Michigan's most diverse public university and considers diversity essential to its urban mission of preparing students to excel in an increasingly diverse and global society," said Cheryl Waites, dean of the Wayne State School of Social Work. "The School of Social Work shares this commitment to diversity as it seeks to train competent and committed social workers who can create coalitions, empower people and communities, advocate for sound policy, engage in and apply research and best practices and communicate with different audiences. All of these competencies are necessary to bring about social justice and racial unity and equity."

The March 31 lecture and panel discussion is the last installment in a three-part series called "Social Justice: Advocacy, Action, Activism" that was organized by the Wayne State School of Social Work and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW)""Michigan Chapter as a call to action for social workers to examine personal biases and eliminate racism and institutional barriers. The series began in October with "Developing a Social Work Response to Racism, Hate Crimes, and Police Use of Force," a program staged at universities across Michigan that featured a taped interview with former psychiatric social worker and U.S. congressman Ron Dellums followed by breakout discussion group sessions. The second event was 2015 Legislative Education and Advocacy Day on Nov. 11, which brought hundreds of social justice advocates to Lansing to attend forums and workshops on legislative issues, political action, and advocacy efforts.

The Diversity Lecture is free and open to students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the public. RSVP's are not required for the Lecture. For more information on the Lecture, which has been approved by the Michigan Social Work Continuing Education Collaborative for two CE contract hours, is available from Lauree Emery at ab7097@wayne.edu or events.wayne.edu. For more information on the free Diversity Reception and Panel Discussion, contact Julie Alter-Kay at ae8440@wayne.edu. RSVP's are required for the Reception and Panel Discussion can be completed at events.wayne.edu.