Husker Dialogues: Be Bold. Take the First Step.

Curt Bright Author

08/17/2021 Added

58 Plays

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Be Bold. Take the First Step.

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[00:00:00.000](upbeat music)
[00:00:06.850]Hi, I'm Chancellor Ronnie Green.
[00:00:09.570]I'm Dr. Marco Barker,
[00:00:11.070]Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Inclusion.
[00:00:13.530]And I'm Charlie Foster, Assistant Vice Chancellor
[00:00:16.530]for Inclusive Student Excellence.
[00:00:18.910]I also serve as the Director of the Office
[00:00:20.910]of Academic Success and Intercultural Services,
[00:00:23.820]known as OASIS.
[00:00:25.360]We are so excited to have you
[00:00:27.010]at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
[00:00:28.640]And we welcome you into our community.
[00:00:31.720]And to this year's Husker Dialogues.
[00:00:34.250]At Nebraska, we believe in the power of every person.
[00:00:38.220]Here, every person and every interaction matters.
[00:00:42.200]That's why Husker Dialogues is important.
[00:00:44.884]Huskers empower other Huskers to use their voices,
[00:00:48.490]fostering inclusive excellence
[00:00:50.300]and building campus community.
[00:00:52.190]Inclusive student excellence begins with you.
[00:00:54.870]Join the conversations here at Husker Dialogues.
[00:00:58.670]Be bold.
[00:01:00.000]Take the first step.
[00:01:01.520]At Nebraska, all are welcome.
[00:01:04.570]We are breaking down barriers
[00:01:06.040]and working toward creating racial equity
[00:01:08.350]on our anti-racism journey.
[00:01:11.030]Courageous conversations with our peers are a part of that.
[00:01:15.110]Intentional discussion is a catalyst for change.
[00:01:19.300]This is the first step of this journey.
[00:01:22.030]Be bold and join the conversation.
[00:01:24.510]We want you to use this time
[00:01:26.700]to step out of your comfort zone
[00:01:28.460]and learn from each other's stories.
[00:01:30.550]Your story is powerful.
[00:01:32.330]You have influence.
[00:01:34.110]Husker Dialogues is a space for learning and growth.
[00:01:37.890]Listen and engage with one another.
[00:01:40.080]Remember, this is a dialogue, not a debate.
[00:01:43.490]The only thing to gain here is better understanding
[00:01:46.330]of your fellow Huskers.
[00:01:48.450]At Nebraska, we use our collective strengths.
[00:01:52.290]At Nebraska, we learn together.
[00:01:54.430]At Nebraska, we grow together.
[00:01:57.730]Go Big Red!
[00:01:59.699](upbeat music)
[00:02:07.470]Why'd you choose Nebraska?
[00:02:09.910]I hate when I get asked that question.
[00:02:12.720]I wonder if they expect some grand answer,
[00:02:15.580]because if there is one, I certainly don't have it.
[00:02:19.050]For the longest time, I didn't know why I chose Nebraska.
[00:02:22.840]Why does anyone move to the middle of the country?
[00:02:25.690]As I started to think more into it, I confused myself.
[00:02:30.030]I'm not someone that blends in well.
[00:02:32.340]I'm a girl with big hair, hoops or other funky earrings
[00:02:35.840]and an interesting choice of clothing.
[00:02:38.600]I have a loud voice and I'm not afraid to use it.
[00:02:41.710]So, why Nebraska,
[00:02:43.710]where I would stick out even more than I usually do?
[00:02:47.110]Let me start out by saying that money was a big factor.
[00:02:50.140]As a first-generation low-income student,
[00:02:52.490]the cost of college was something that mattered a lot.
[00:02:55.750]It also didn't hurt that Nebraska was far from home.
[00:02:59.150]I've also always wanted to leave Minnesota.
[00:03:02.250]It felt like I was supposed to live
[00:03:04.130]anywhere else but the Midwest, so logically,
[00:03:07.460]of course I went deeper into the middle of the country.
[00:03:10.820]Fun fact, I didn't even tour campus before I committed.
[00:03:15.250]I saw a UNL rep at a college fair, applied, got in,
[00:03:19.780]and suddenly I was going to Lincoln, Nebraska.
[00:03:22.860]However, I did come to campus in the summer
[00:03:25.460]during new student enrollment and met a couple of people,
[00:03:28.300]including this dude named Seth.
[00:03:31.220]Not only was I scared, but so were my friends and family.
[00:03:35.360]Being in a new place by myself was scary.
[00:03:38.610]I knew a few people from high school,
[00:03:40.430]including my roommate, Jill,
[00:03:42.480]but it was still nerve wracking.
[00:03:45.180]The first weekend of college was a wild one.
[00:03:48.120]I moved in and found out that Seth,
[00:03:50.530]the dude I had met at NSE,
[00:03:52.410]lived on my floor across the hall.
[00:03:54.970]Much to my dismay,
[00:03:56.450]both Seth and Jill were engineering majors
[00:03:59.060]and left to attend some retreat,
[00:04:00.870]leaving me alone once again.
[00:04:03.120]Eventually I ended up meeting people
[00:04:05.210]at events like New Student Convocation
[00:04:07.690]and the Freshmen Tunnel Walk,
[00:04:09.330]where everyone in the class makes a big Nebraska N.
[00:04:13.010]As the semester started picking up
[00:04:14.980]and it was around the time I should feel more comfortable,
[00:04:18.040]I couldn't shake the feeling of not fitting in.
[00:04:21.560]Within my first month here,
[00:04:23.440]I got asked about my political beliefs
[00:04:25.350]by five different people.
[00:04:27.470]In my residence hall,
[00:04:28.770]I had people compliment me and ask me
[00:04:30.870]why I was wearing a shower cap when it was a bonnet,
[00:04:34.180]which I wore to protect my curl pattern that night.
[00:04:37.530]I applied to be involved in organizations,
[00:04:40.360]but they all rejected me.
[00:04:42.680]I tried to get involved
[00:04:43.830]in different registered student organizations,
[00:04:46.550]but because it felt like everyone knew each other,
[00:04:49.000]I got scared and eventually stopped attending meetings.
[00:04:52.870]As one of about 700 black students on this campus,
[00:04:56.380]and even fewer are those who come from out of state,
[00:04:59.240]this all contributed to a feeling of alienation
[00:05:02.550]I couldn't shake.
[00:05:04.390]To fix this problem,
[00:05:05.810]I applied to transfer back home to Minnesota.
[00:05:08.980]I don't give up on many things,
[00:05:10.860]but I really felt like I couldn't do much else
[00:05:13.080]to improve my time in Lincoln.
[00:05:15.800]After going home for winter break,
[00:05:17.900]it felt like something switched within me.
[00:05:20.730]I convinced myself to give it one more shot and branch out.
[00:05:24.890]I ended up registering for Dance Marathon
[00:05:27.410]and I went by myself to HuskerThon,
[00:05:30.060]the 12-hour dance party to raise money
[00:05:32.440]for Children's Hospital.
[00:05:34.400]Although it was scary and I felt out of place,
[00:05:37.520]I stayed for the entire time and loved it.
[00:05:40.530]I now serve on the recruitment team
[00:05:42.840]to make Dance Marathon a more inclusive space,
[00:05:45.930]especially for students of color.
[00:05:48.600]I started opening up more and talking to others,
[00:05:51.700]specifically within the OASIS office
[00:05:54.120]and organizations like Afrikan People's Union
[00:05:57.000]and African Student's Association.
[00:05:59.440]Before I could really get a chance to get involved,
[00:06:02.580]a global pandemic hit and we were moved online,
[00:06:05.780]moving me home earlier than anticipated.
[00:06:08.930]After my freshman year got cut short
[00:06:11.270]and I had a summer to reflect,
[00:06:13.190]I knew I wanted to do something
[00:06:14.890]to be more involved on campus.
[00:06:17.340]During the summer, I applied to ASUN Student Government
[00:06:20.600]because I wanted to find ways
[00:06:22.230]to make equitable and lasting change.
[00:06:24.900]I joined the Campus Life and Safety Committee
[00:06:27.440]and later got appointed as an at-large senator,
[00:06:30.370]giving me the ability to vote on bills
[00:06:32.370]that would better our campus for 26,000 Huskers.
[00:06:36.520]After I came back to campus in August,
[00:06:38.920]I was appointed as a Junior Executive
[00:06:40.740]for the Black Student Union,
[00:06:42.430]where I became the Policy Chair.
[00:06:44.870]While I will always jokingly make fun of myself
[00:06:47.810]for choosing Nebraska, I love being here.
[00:06:51.410]I've been able to meet
[00:06:52.300]some of the most influential people in my life.
[00:06:55.560]The opportunities that I've had wouldn't be possible
[00:06:58.050]if I didn't choose to stay here and make my own community.
[00:07:02.090]So, why does this matter to you?
[00:07:04.530]Most of you watching are first-year students
[00:07:06.630]who are probably feeling nervous.
[00:07:08.790]It's a new campus, new people and new opportunities.
[00:07:13.270]While that can be daunting, it's also an amazing experience.
[00:07:17.810]My biggest piece of advice is to be scared and take chances.
[00:07:22.200]If there's something you've been wanting to start,
[00:07:24.530]there's no time like the present.
[00:07:26.810]If you're scared about meeting others,
[00:07:28.830]start with talking to people in classes.
[00:07:31.580]I bet that they're as scared as you are
[00:07:33.580]to interact with others.
[00:07:35.730]If I had let fear consume me and left UNL,
[00:07:39.080]I wouldn't have been able to meet these amazing people.
[00:07:42.270]If you're scared about the fact
[00:07:43.810]that you haven't made any connections yet,
[00:07:46.190]let me be your first.
[00:07:48.240]Hi, my name is Meyri and I love rollerblading,
[00:07:51.270]reading, and making others feel included.
[00:07:54.560]I'd love for you to reach out and say hi
[00:07:56.980]so you can foster your community at UNL faster than I did.
[00:08:01.805](upbeat music)
[00:08:10.420]Hello, class of 2025.
[00:08:12.370]I'm Tamayo Zhou.
[00:08:13.600]I would like to share my student leadership journey at UNL
[00:08:16.970]for the past seven years.
[00:08:18.680]Before pursuing my master degree
[00:08:21.120]in educational administration,
[00:08:23.220]I started my journey at UNL as an undergraduate student
[00:08:26.970]in the College of Business.
[00:08:29.210]I was never given any racial literacy education
[00:08:33.100]or understood what inclusive excellence is
[00:08:36.820]until I came to UNL.
[00:08:39.050]Being an international student from China,
[00:08:41.530]college was very challenging for me.
[00:08:43.890]I had to navigate a different education system,
[00:08:47.310]language, and the culture,
[00:08:49.580]and how to experiencing the transition
[00:08:51.960]from being a member of the majority
[00:08:54.290]to being a part of the marginalized groups in the society.
[00:08:58.968]As a part of the International Student Community,
[00:09:02.300]I knew many marginalized student
[00:09:04.860]had faced microaggressions, stereotypes, and hateful acts.
[00:09:10.320]I'm grateful for the support system
[00:09:12.750]I was able to find while being involved on campus.
[00:09:16.090]I made friends from various backgrounds
[00:09:18.400]through student organizations and being a member
[00:09:21.180]of the New Student Enrollment Welcome Team.
[00:09:24.140]We shared experience and stories with each other.
[00:09:28.400]My friends encouraged me to pursue leadership roles
[00:09:31.610]in student organizations
[00:09:33.310]so I could pass on the information and the motivation.
[00:09:36.910]With the close support I have,
[00:09:38.583]I also decided to meet the challenge straight forward.
[00:09:42.810]I practiced my leadership skills
[00:09:44.780]to foster an engaging and inclusive space
[00:09:47.910]so people could hear me out
[00:09:49.530]and change their assumptions and bias.
[00:09:52.590]I began by actively engaging in in-class group discussions,
[00:09:57.470]then landing campus jobs,
[00:09:58.950]such as Resident Assistant and Peer Mentor.
[00:10:02.800]I serve as the president of the International Business Club,
[00:10:06.330]and then become the chair of ASUN
[00:10:09.230]Student Government Committee of Diversity and Inclusion.
[00:10:14.210]I'm now working as the Vice President of Student Affairs
[00:10:17.890]at the Graduate Student Assembly.
[00:10:20.290]During my leadership experience,
[00:10:22.180]I always have inclusive excellence in my heart
[00:10:25.700]to support every single person in the community
[00:10:28.950]so they do not have to experience what I have faced.
[00:10:32.600]Although I'm shy and introverted,
[00:10:35.140]I'm determined to make a change.
[00:10:37.400]I hope my journey can motivate you
[00:10:39.322]to continuously pursue inclusive excellence.
[00:10:43.380]In the end, I would like to invite you
[00:10:45.520]to connect with people in the same Zoom room.
[00:10:48.580]Utilize social media to truly learn,
[00:10:51.370]understand each other's different backgrounds,
[00:10:54.340]opinions, cultures, and challenges.
[00:10:57.480]Together, we will make a change.
[00:10:59.888](upbeat music)
[00:11:08.820]My name is Aspen Schoenrock,
[00:11:10.340]and I came to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
[00:11:13.280]I was not in a good place.
[00:11:15.320]I am from a small town in Kansas,
[00:11:17.290]about four hours from here.
[00:11:19.340]I've had anxiety for as long as I can remember.
[00:11:22.600]The first time I remember actually it affecting my life
[00:11:26.300]was around third grade,
[00:11:27.810]when I made myself sick over my first sleepover
[00:11:30.720]because I was scared of the unknowns and the what ifs.
[00:11:34.030]From that point on, I had different panic attacks
[00:11:37.270]over things most people wouldn't even worry about.
[00:11:40.400]I moved twice, and my parents never thought it bothered me
[00:11:43.250]because I always made friends so easily.
[00:11:46.210]Looking back now, I think it was more the fact
[00:11:49.170]that I did not want to be alone with my thoughts.
[00:11:52.160]My mental health has always been a struggle to handle,
[00:11:55.180]and going to a new school raised my anxiety even higher.
[00:11:59.630]I did everything I could
[00:12:00.850]to make it seem like I had it all together,
[00:12:03.660]but really, most of the time I was exhausted
[00:12:06.900]and afraid of disappointing those around me.
[00:12:10.160]That scared me, since now I was going to a school
[00:12:13.100]four hours away without my support system.
[00:12:16.660]When I came to UNL, I didn't know what I was going to do.
[00:12:19.950]Eventually, I did what I had always done,
[00:12:22.590]push it down and then cry in the dark by myself
[00:12:25.140]when it got to be too much.
[00:12:27.170]The first semester of college was hard.
[00:12:29.480]Within a three week span, my boyfriend was in an accident
[00:12:32.750]and that we didn't know
[00:12:33.620]if he was going to be able to walk again.
[00:12:36.290]I was in a car accident,
[00:12:37.980]and then my great grandpa passed away.
[00:12:40.800]At that point, my grades started to slip
[00:12:43.410]and I felt like I was failing everyone around me.
[00:12:46.810]I'm an engineering major,
[00:12:48.290]so with that came a lot of over explaining
[00:12:50.870]and others asking if I was sure I wanted to be an engineer,
[00:12:54.000]because the classes were really hard.
[00:12:56.820]Wondering if I picked the right career field
[00:12:59.070]caused my self-worth and mental health to start declining.
[00:13:02.850]There's one introduction class in engineering
[00:13:05.340]that the professor had all the women stand up.
[00:13:08.030]I looked around, and for every woman,
[00:13:10.430]there were at least three to four men.
[00:13:13.090]It's hard being told consistently by your classmates
[00:13:15.960]that your major is not for women.
[00:13:18.160]Being from a small town did not make things any easier.
[00:13:21.660]I had this stigma that people kept giving me
[00:13:24.290]that I was not as educated as everyone else.
[00:13:27.550]I had never been in such a big place before for school.
[00:13:31.270]It got to the point where I couldn't take it anymore.
[00:13:34.270]I wanted the fear and uncertainty to leave.
[00:13:37.100]By luck, fate, or grace,
[00:13:39.680]I saw an ad in the union on one of the screens
[00:13:42.240]about Counseling and Psychological Services or CAPS.
[00:13:46.470]I knew what people thought about therapy and mental illness,
[00:13:49.760]but I had nothing left to lose.
[00:13:52.210]Going to CAPS and meeting with the counselor
[00:13:55.160]is the best decision I ever made.
[00:13:57.860]From our first session,
[00:13:59.090]I knew I wanted to break down the wall
[00:14:01.080]that was surrounding mental illness and show everyone
[00:14:04.500]that since we are all going through something,
[00:14:06.930]why not do it together.
[00:14:08.930]In our school song, there is a line
[00:14:11.330]that we stick together in all kinds of weather.
[00:14:14.530]Why should that stop at the sports we cheer for
[00:14:16.840]or activities we do?
[00:14:18.870]The organization, Active Minds,
[00:14:20.720]is here to break that stigma.
[00:14:22.800]Mental health awareness is something
[00:14:24.620]I am very passionate about,
[00:14:26.680]not only because I'm on medication
[00:14:29.070]and have to balance myself every day,
[00:14:32.010]but because I've lost close friends
[00:14:34.620]to different mental illnesses.
[00:14:37.460]Coming to a new school can be intimidating,
[00:14:40.310]especially if you feel like you're all alone
[00:14:42.860]and no one around you really understands
[00:14:45.740]what's happening in your own mind.
[00:14:48.850]There are resources here to help.
[00:14:51.440]After that first day of therapy, I made a promise to myself
[00:14:55.180]that I would not go on this journey for anyone but myself
[00:14:59.250]and to help those around me.
[00:15:01.240]Recently, I got an emotional support animal named Opal
[00:15:04.750]that lives on campus with me.
[00:15:06.780]She helps me through my panic attacks
[00:15:08.700]and stresses of school and testing.
[00:15:11.270]I can honestly say I've never been happier in life
[00:15:14.810]than right now.
[00:15:16.310]I finally feel like I'm making a difference,
[00:15:18.570]not only in my own life, but in the life of others.
[00:15:21.780]The most important thing I've learned
[00:15:23.670]while attending UNL so far
[00:15:26.070]is that there are so many people here to help
[00:15:28.760]and people really do care.
[00:15:31.410]I don't know who I would have become
[00:15:33.520]if I would've gone anywhere else
[00:15:35.590]or just decided to push it all down
[00:15:37.750]and fall deeper down that hole.
[00:15:39.970]Help is out there,
[00:15:41.500]and it's hard to ask, but Active Minds is here.
[00:15:45.410]I am able and willing to go with anyone to CAPS
[00:15:48.680]and help them.
[00:15:50.090]That's why this club and doing this talk
[00:15:52.620]is so important to me.
[00:15:54.860]If I can make a difference in one life or even save one,
[00:15:59.520]then I want to do everything I can.
[00:16:02.400]This life is a beautiful thing,
[00:16:04.210]and I'm so proud to be a Husker
[00:16:06.720]and make a difference on my campus.
[00:16:09.672](upbeat music)

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Husker Dialogues: Be Bold. Take the First Step.

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