Husker Dialogues Cards

History

After a climate survey was administered in 2014-2015, the Dine, Dialogue & Pass It On (DDPIO) program developed with the goal of encouraging dialogue about race, diversity and inclusion; and helping faculty and staff develop the skills to facilitate the discussions.

Based on a lecture by Dr. Shelly Tochluk, author of Witnessing Whiteness: The Need to Talk About Race and How to Do It, the program included a specially designed deck of playing cards with questions prompting conversation on topics rarely discussed. The decks of cards inspired conversations during workshops that trained more than 500 members of the university community.

In 2015, Student Affairs made card decks available with the help of a grant from Bringing Theory to Practice. The card decks have been used by:

• Faculty and staff in the classroom and for professional development.
• Student leaders for trainings in the learning communities, student mentor programs, and in the fraternity and sorority community.
• Multicultural center programs to facilitate campus-wide conversations.

Due to the broad applications and stimulating dialogue prompted by the diversity and inclusion card deck, administrators at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln selected the tool to lead meaningful conversations among incoming students. At the Husker Dialogues event in the fall of 2016, more than 360 faculty members, staff members, and student leaders led conversations with more than 2,000 incoming Husker students. At the conclusion of the event, 87% of participants agreed they were more aware of diversity in the campus community and 84% of students felt more confident in their ability to discuss issues regarding diversity and inclusion.

Now two different decks of cards exist to promote meaningful conversations. To request a copy of either deck of cards and learn more about this resource, email studentaffairs@unl.edu.