THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR SUBURBAN STUDIES AT HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY
Celebrates Suburban Diversity With Hofstra’s
Largest Conference to Date and Banquet
October 22-24

Cover Photo and Story Photo by Miranda Gatewood

 

 

Diversity R Us.
You won’t find that saying emblazoned on any campus publication at Hofstra University – not exactly. But Long Island’s largest private institution of higher learning has embraced its spirit with several upcoming events that recognize the growing importance of racial, ethnic, religious and other forms of diversity on campus and throughout Long Island.

Hofstra University President Dr. Stuart Rabinowitz noted that these special initiatives – including the largest academic conference in its history -- emphasize Hofstra’s ongoing commitment to enhancing and celebrating diversity on campus and beyond its borders.

“Long Island is changing, just as suburbs are throughout the nation,” said Rabinowitz. “Hofstra must do more than merely keep up with these dynamic demographic changes, which are changing the face of our region. We must lead in making them a vibrant part of our future, at Hofstra and beyond.”
Four extraordinary days in October – including a unique banquet that literally will be a Celebration of Suburban Diversity -- will put action behind those words.

Tri-State Diversity Council • Oct. 21
On October 21, Hofstra will host the first annual conference of the Tri-State Diversity Council, a new organization comprised primarily of chief corporate diversity officers in the New York, New Jersey, Connecticut area. The all day conference, which will be held at the Hofstra University Club, will include representatives of key corporations with an official commitment to diversity among their employees and customers.
“As each day passes, our region becomes more and more diverse,” said Dennis Kennedy of the National Diversity Council who is organizing this conference as well as many others around the country. “If companies and organizations do not learn how to successfully leverage and manage diversity, it will be very challenging for them to remain competitive.” For more information email dennis.kennedy@nationaldiversitycouncil.org

“An alliance with the corporate diversity officers was a natural fit for Hofstra,” said Lawrence Levy, executive director of the National Center for Suburban Studies. “We hope to find ways to work together for years to come, whether its holding conferences on diversity in the work place, designing training courses or even academic curricula.”

The Diverse Suburb Conference • Oct. 22-24
Another reason the corporate diversity event is so appropriate for Hofstra is that it would be held the day before the start of a major international conference, “The Diverse Suburb: History, Politics and Prospects,” October 22-24. Organized by the Hofstra’s National Center for Suburban Studies and its Cultural Center, the conference will draw academics, activists and policymakers in a range of disciplines to consider what Conference Director Christopher Niedt called “the challenging and emergent phenomenon of suburban diversity.”
According to Dr. Niedt who is Academic Director of the NCSS the conference will explore questions such as these: What are the implications of this growing diversity? To what extent is this apparent growth simply a rediscovery of differences long written out of suburban history? How might the changing suburbs present new opportunities for creating a more just and equitable society?

More than 170 scholars from around the world submitted papers, necessitating a full three days of sessions – more than the much acclaimed conference on the presidency of Bill Clinton. Sessions will reflect a wide array of academic disciplines and subjects. They include panels exploring the politics of suburban diversity, the gay and lesbian experience in suburbia, ways to create educational equity and recruit diverse work forces and examples of immigrant entrepreneurship. But the conference is not for scholars only. A number of sessions have been set up to let community activists interact with researchers on topics including immigration, policing and ethnic media.

Conference Cultural Event • Oct. 23
One special conference cultural event – with a Latin theme – will take place on Friday evening, October 23. At 7 pm, Luis Cordero Y Los Amigos Del Amargue will perform on the Student Center Theater. The band will be interviewed before the theater audience by Nancy Solomon of Long Island Traditions, in what promises to be a lively discussion of music and culture. After an intermission, the acclaimed Teatro Experimentale Yerbabruja will perform an original production of “What Killed Marcelo Lucero?” Lucero was the Ecquadorian immigrant who was murdered in Patchogue by a group of teens who went out looking for Latinos to beat. The price for non-students is $10.

Celebration of Suburban Diversity Banquet • Oct. 22
The biggest and most festive of the community events is the Celebration of Suburban Diversity 2009. It is the first time in memory that a Long Island institution tried to bring together people from different racial, ethnic, religious and other groups, including the disabled and members of the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and trans-gender communities, for a night devoted to celebrating suburban diversity.

The principal speaker is the respected Charles Wang, co-developer of the Lighthouse and owner of the New York Islanders. Among the honorees is the beloved Father Thomas Hartman. The founding co-chair is the well-known Mohinder Singh Taneja, a Sihk, who works for the Nassau County Office of Minority Affairs. “I am very honored and excited to be part of an event with the goals and ideals of this one,” said Taneja. “Hofstra should be very proud to have put all the time and effort into bringing it together.”

The list of co-chairs is extremely impressive, representing some of the most influential people on Long Island, men and women of varying backgrounds. They include Robert Catell, John Durso, Roslyn D. Goldmacher, David Ochoa, Jon Cooper, Christine Conniff Sheahan, Don Dreyer, Jessica K. Taneja, the Rev. Reginald Tuggle, Tai Wang, Michael Balboni, Maria Morales-Prieto, Matthew Crosson, Linda Leaf, Art Gianelli, Robert McMillan, Dr. Shakir Muhki, Resi Cooper, Eric Alexander, Sarah Lansdale, Thomas Garry, Marianne Garvin, Henry Holley, Jeffrey Kraut, Resi Cooper, John Kominicki and Rick Kruse.

Wide Praise for Hofstra outreach
“The Diverse Suburb conference and Celebration of Suburban Diversity banquet were organized in the same spirit as 100 Black Men,” said Henry Holley, a founder of the influential civic organization. “Hofstra is trying to reach out to our community through the Hofstra for Hempstead program, and the conference and banquet are other examples of the university's effort to work with us.”

“It's important for the Chinese people to get involved in understanding the culture of others,” said Tai Wang, owner of WAC Lighting of Garden City, as to why she became involved with the Celebration of Suburban Diversity banquet. “It's also important for our neighbors to learn more about us.”

“Hofstra's conference and banquet will help fight stereotypes that hold all of us back,” said Maria Prieto-Rosales, founder of The Hispanic Network. “Not every Latino is an undocumented day laborer. Latinos are making a tremendous contribution as executives and doctors and teachers, and we want people to know this and I'm happy to be a part of an event that promotes tolerance and understanding.”

Suburban Diversity Banquet Festivities
The evening will include more than speeches. There will be multicultural performances by Teatro Experimentale Yerberbruja, Chinese and Indian dance troupes and the renown Hempstead High School Select Choir. Proceeds from the banquet will support scholarships, including an essay contest for high school students, and research into diversity related subjects. Visit www.hofstra.edu/ncss and click on “events” for more information.

“Long Island’s multicultural diversity is the key to our social and economic survival,” said NCSS’s Levy. “The ability of people from a variety of backgrounds to live and work together is crucial to our prosperity. Diversity is everybody’s business – and it’s good for everybody’s business. The growing number of newcomers, often from faraway lands, are the new students, customers, students and entrepreneurs who can revive and sustain our economy. Getting to know each other is essential to our success. And that’s the spirit we are trying to capture.”
That’s the spirit that Hofstra is trying to capture -- Diversity R Us.