Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:05):
Hello,
I'm Callie and I’m Sara
and this is community Spotlight.
We are students in the College and Career
Studies program at
UK, this radio segment will spotlight
different things in the local community
each week.
Thanks for listening.
(00:31):
Today's Community
Spotlight will feature a conversation
with Dr.
Nicholas Wright,
the director of Diversity,
Equity and Inclusion
at the Human Development Institute
at the University of Kentucky.
In this conversation, some students at UK
ask Dr.
Wright
some questions about his role at HDI,
about what led him to this work,
(00:53):
and about his thoughts
on the connections
between DEI, Disability,
and Universal Design.
Thanks for listening.
So we are sitting here with Dr.
Nicholas Wright
and we're going to have
a little conversation about what
his role is as the director of Diversity,
(01:13):
Equity and Inclusion
at the Human Development Institute
at the University of Kentucky.
And also with me are some students.
We have Kylie and Jakob and Callie
and Boris in here, and my name is Erin,
and we're just going to have a little
chat about DEI.
(01:34):
So, Dr. Wright, how are you doing today?
I'm doing well, Erin. I'm doing well.
Thank you so much
for inviting me to this session.
We're really happy to talk to you.
I think we're just going to
kind of take turns asking you questions
and can I get a sense of what you do
and stuff like that.
And then you can talk about anything
we didn't get to.
Perfect. Sounds great.
(01:54):
So, Kylie,
do you want to start us off
with some question? Yeah.
So can you tell us a little bit
about your background
before coming to HDI?
Yeah.
So my background before
coming to the Human
Development Institute,
I think that that starts
at the University of Louisville.
So at the University of Louisville,
I was there for approximately ten years
and at the University of Louisville,
(02:16):
I had the opportunity
to work in a variety of settings
across higher education.
As I mentioned before, that I was working
in housing and residence
life and I was working
in the academic classroom
and I was working in admissions
and just a few other things over there.
But one of the most prominent roles
that I had was in the Disability
Resource Center.
So in the Disability Resource Center,
I had the opportunity
(02:37):
of increasing
accessibility and inclusivity
across the University of Louisville,
and that was something
that was extremely passionate to me.
I was there in that role
as a graduate assistant
and then was promoted to a disability
resources coordinator
and just completely fell in love with it.
From there,
I graduated with my bachelor's,
master's and doctorate
philosophy in counseling
(02:57):
personal services
for the specialization
in college student personnel.
So I knew that was
a really long name with it.
But from there I had the opportunity
of going to Minnesota,
and in Minnesota
I was at St Cloud State University,
and at St Cloud State University,
I was leading student accessibility services
as director
(03:18):
and in my role there as director,
I was able to
administrate the accessibility services
and accommodations for the university
at approximately 12,000 students
there. Working with them.
And then in addition to that,
also leading some of the work in the ADA
committee.
So what it was
was that the Americans With Disabilities Act
(03:40):
Committee at the University
was there for students, staff,
faculty and community members
to make sure
that they had
an accessible campus
and that everything was
was well for them.
So it was so nice to lead
that organization there.
To lead that group
of professionals and create
more of an accessible campus.
Very cool. That's a lot.
(04:00):
Yeah, it's a lot.
You have a lot of history
coming with you to this job,
which is great. Yeah. Thank you.
Yeah.
You kind
of already touched on this a little bit,
but I kind of want to ask, like,
what got you interested
in work specifically
regarding diversity,
equity and inclusion?
Yeah.
So when it comes to work
in diversity, equity and inclusion,
(04:23):
as I mentioned before,
I was at the University of Louisville,
but I didn't necessarily
say what I was there for my education.
I was actually
going for a Bachelor of Science
in Justice administration.
I planned on being a lawyer.
That was my plan.
That was my goal.
That was there.
As you may be able to tell this moment,
I'm not a lawyer.
It's not- it’s not the case at all.
(04:46):
Something happened in my life
that had changed
the way
that I navigated the realm
to change some of my goals
that were there.
I was in a accident,
in a motorcycle accident in Western Kentucky,
and in that motorcycle accident,
I - it’s an extremely strange event
where I was riding with
some friends one night
and there was an Amish horse and buggy
(05:09):
that was there.
There was ten motorcyclists.
The first nine went by,
scared the horse, and the horse
broke off in the buggy and hit me.
Next thing I know that I was life
flighted to Vanderbilt.
I had a traumatic brain injury and
woke up from a coma and
I had that experience.
That how challenging that was.
(05:29):
And I remember that
when I woke up from that coma,
I remember the first thing that I said
was, one, I checked on my motorcycle
to see if it was okay.
It was not. It was not okay.
But I knew at that moment
that another day wasn't promised.
So what I wanted to do is
I wanted to work
in DEI. I wanted to work,
in more specifically
in higher education.
Creating that inclusivity
(05:50):
for students on campus.
I wanted to make sure
that they had the opportunity to achieve
that bachelor's degree
that everybody is striving for.
Wow.
That's quite a
that's quite an interesting
backstory.
For your, your journey here. Yeah.
Thank you for sharing that with us.
Callie, did you have a
question you want to ask?
(06:10):
What is your
favorite thing about the job?
My favorite thing about my job,
I think that it would just
be the opportunity to work with diverse
individuals,
to work with people
and learn
more about their unique identities.
I think that's something
that's so exciting.
(06:30):
The reason why I say that is because
when it comes to my strengths
and my strengths quest,
some of my top strengths are, one (06:36):
maximizer,
but two is WOO.
WOO stands for winning others over.
So I really appreciate the opportunity
of winning others over
and having the opportunity
to break the ice
and relate
to people and connect to them
and at the Human Development
Institute, I have the opportunity to do that
because we have 350 plus employees here.
So although I have been here
(06:58):
close to
two years now,
I'm still meeting new people.
People may know of me
from staff meetings
or whatever else it is,
but I'm still meeting new people.
So it's still
every day
I get the opportunity
to meet someone new,
to win them over,
make sure they feel comfortable
and make sure that I can find
whatever it is
to ensure
that they can be their
most authentic self.
(07:18):
That's really cool.
And Callie you
are also working on things
this semester about
connecting with other people.
So that's kind of a really cool answer
to your question.
Callie's doing some practicum work around
how social connection
happens with gatherings
and how you like
how you kind of plan for that,
how you plan an event
(07:39):
or gathering or decide
what activities
that you do with other
people can affect your connections
with them.
You know, it's
not just about something
being a party
or being a place
that you go to hang out or whatever.
But those social connections
can be really important
for people
in other ways
that we don't always see or think about.
Yeah, yeah,
I think that
you're right about that, Erin.
(08:00):
And also, Callie,
when we think about
those social interactions
that we have, regardless
if it's a party or it's
just in a dyad or whatever it is,
having that social connection
with someone else,
that's what ensures
that we feel that sense
of belonging.
That’s what ensures
that we feel that sense of connection.
Absolutely. Agreed.
I want to ask you a little
bit about well,
(08:22):
as you obviously know, disabilities
often been left
out of conversations about DEI.
The history of DEI has not always
included disability
and certainly not fully
in encompassing
all different disabilities.
What do you think is the importance
of considering disability
as part of the discourse about DEI?
(08:44):
So when I think of disability,
I always tell people that disability
is such an important part of DEI,
over and over and over again.
What happens is that when we say the word,
the letters DEI
or when we say diversity,
equity and inclusion,
people automatically
think of apparent diversity,
They think about what they
(09:04):
what you may be able
to see from a billboard
or something like that,
which yes, that is also diversity that's
there. But
over and over again,
we ignore disabilities
and we don't think
to consider individuals
with disabilities
in that conversation surrounding DEI,
surrounding that.
I think that
(09:25):
when we think about disabilities,
we have to understand that
disabilities, your ability,
that's part of diversity.
The unique
strengths, weaknesses, identities
that people have, that's part of it.
When we think of equity
that has to be in disability,
that's there
ensuring that people have equal access
and whatever they need.
That way
(09:45):
they can fully be involved
in all aspects of life,
making sure
they have those resources,
and also understanding that we all don't
start from the exact same place.
And then the inclusion part as well,
because when we think about inclusion,
it's in the policies
but also in the interactions
that we have.
It's more
than just inviting
someone to the table to be there,
but you don't want to-
(10:06):
these individuals
to just feel tokenized in there.
You want to make sure
that their voices are heard,
that they are able to add
in all of their ideas,
their unique perspectives
into the conversations.
And that's- when we have disability
and we have that
as part of DEI when
when they had that
as part of the conversation,
that's when we can reach
(10:26):
a more holistic answer.
Absolutely.
Thank you.
So what is one thing
you would like people to know
about what you do?
I think I would like people to know
that we're all in this together.
And I've said this before,
(10:47):
but I'll say it again.
I think it's important
that we all understand
that we're all in this together, that
although I am the director of diversity,
Equity and Inclusion,
diversity, equity, inclusion work
that’s everybody's job.
That’s - everyone's in there.
Yes, it may be in my title,
but it's in your role.
It's in your
the work that you do,
even if you don't call it that,
(11:07):
even if you don't use those letters,
you're still doing that work.
You're still making sure
that we can have a more
inclusive environment.
You're still working to make sure
that we have that accessibility.
I think that with DEI
we can all serve as champions
with diversity, equity, inclusion.
We can all do this.
And it's important
that we are
becoming more
and more culturally component
each and every day
that we can do this work.
(11:28):
But as we do this,
I think that in our actions
we create that ripple effect.
It's something that goes out that
if we have those interactions,
let's say I have an interaction
with Callie that is inclusive, that
promotes belonging.
Now Callie's going to have
that conversation with Erin,
something like that, and it's
(11:49):
going to continue to ripple out.
And that's something
that is far away from a DEI director,
far away from that,
but it continues the ripple out
throughout the organization.
You've talked about connections
between DEI initiatives
and Universal design.
Can you talk about that a little bit?
I can.
So when we think about diversity,
(12:09):
equity and inclusion initiatives and how
that really relates to universal design,
we have to think about what universal is
and what universal design does.
So when we think about universal design,
we're thinking about ensuring that
products and services are available
and fit a wide range of people
(12:31):
really thinking about all people,
and that's people
with various identities and abilities
and everything that's there.
So universal
design really goes into that equity piece
that's there, that equity.
How I try to tell people about
universal design
is we're not just
talking about accommodations
that may be specific to one person.
(12:52):
We're talking about something
that fits really all people
that's in there.
Think about it
as in Netflix.
When Netflix,
and you're able to turn on
closed captions.
Many people turn on Netflix
closed captions
even if they are not deaf
or hearing impaired.
Even if that's not the case,
they still turn that on
because it helps them comprehend.
It helps them understand.
And by doing that, yes,
(13:13):
it may be
a little more work to add
those closed captions on there,
but by adding it on there now,
it appeals to a wider audience.
Now we're able to have those services
that are more accessible for everybody.
So that's the importance
of universal design
and that's the importance
of universal design
in diversity, equity,
and inclusion work
is that we're appealing
not just to a specific population,
we're going to everybody.
(13:36):
That is so true.
You helped teach the intro class
in Universal Design, HDI
350.
Why is that class important?
Yeah, it did.
So I helped with instruction with the HDI
350 course
and with that course
I think that it was incredibly important.
(13:58):
It's one of those courses
that has an interdisciplinary design.
It's one of those that we had
people that were undergraduate, but also
that were just graduate,
and also those students
who might be full time
students, also others that
have a background,
they have a professional experience
that are there.
And they're also taking these course
as well on the side,
(14:19):
those conversations that were in there,
I think that's what was most important.
The conversations that were had
that we were able
to have those interactions.
We talked before
about how the connections
work, how important those were.
And I think that that class
was one of those
that people are able
to have those interactions
through those discussions
being able
to learn about
how other people navigated
the world and navigated the system.
(14:40):
I think that's something
that was incredibly important to have.
So I'm really happy
that I had the opportunity
to instruct the class.
So one thing that I really have
an interest in
is higher education in general
and just people having accessibility
to that,
like being able
to come and get a bachelor's degree
and just further their education
for so many different like
(15:01):
there's just a lot that goes into it.
It's like a lot to explain.
But can you tell me like,
why you chose counseling
and personnel service?
Yeah, so it's counseling,
personal services,
with a specialization
in college student personnel.
Okay, that's there. Yeah.
So I definitely can tell you
a little bit
more about why I chose that,
because when we think about
some of those things,
I talked earlier about why
(15:21):
I decide to do this work in DEI.
The main focus
of that work wasn't DEI
initially, it was just college
student personnel,
just higher education,
making sure
that I could meet
and work with all students.
And I'm sure that we have all-
we're either students
or have been students before.
We understand how diverse students are.
And I think that's the reason
(15:41):
that DEI just fell in there,
that I found that I was doing this work.
And I was I was looking around
not too many people
who were doing the work.
And it's one of those situations where
I thought that someone
should be doing the work.
And I'm thinking, why not me now?
Why not me?
Why can't I do this work and making sure
that I can at least be a champion?
Because it's kind of those things
(16:01):
that teach the teacher
that we can all be in this together.
And I think that
being in this role,
I don't want to just
keep knowledge for myself.
I think that we're better in this world
when we work together,
when we have those opportunities
to share our knowledge
and not be selfish
but share the knowledge with it.
So I think that's the reason I do
this work, is to increase
the knowledge,
increase the cultural competency of higher education
(16:23):
of all professionals
that can be there
and make sure that we can support
each and every individual.
Thank you.
Well, Dr.
Wright, this has been
a really great conversation.
And I just want to ask you
if there is anything else
you haven't had
a chance to talk about that
you would like to share
with people listening?
I think something that we've been able
(16:44):
to touch on before
but haven't really been able to dive
deep in. I am extremely happy
that I can be my most authentic
self as I take on this work.
When we think about
in my authentic identity
as a multiracial, cisgendered man
who's in the millennial age group
that focuses on DEI
(17:04):
and also as a self advocate,
as someone with a disability,
I am happy to be-
to have the opportunity
to do this work,
creating more accessible,
inclusive campuses
and in the environments,
not just here at the Human
Development Institute
or at the University of Kentucky,
but also across the nation
in higher education,
making sure that each
and every student realizes
(17:26):
they are important
and then they can be their most authentic
selves that all time.
Thank you so much,
Dr.
Wright and Kylie, Jakob, Callie and Boris.
Thank you all for this conversation.
I really appreciate it.
Thank you.
Big thanks to Dr.
Nicholas Wright
and to the UK students involved
(17:47):
for this conversation.
This has been Community Spotlight.
Thanks for listening.
Hello,
I'm Callie and I’m Sara
and this is community Spotlight.
We are students in the College and Career
Studies program at
UK, this radio segment will spotlight
different things in the local community
each week.
Thanks for listening.
(00:31):
Today's Community
Spotlight will feature a conversation
with Dr.
Nicholas Wright,
the director of Diversity,
Equity and Inclusion
at the Human Development Institute
at the University of Kentucky.
In this conversation, some students at UK
ask Dr.
Wright
some questions about his role at HDI,
about what led him to this work,
(00:53):
and about his thoughts
on the connections
between DEI, Disability,
and Universal Design.
Thanks for listening.
So we are sitting here with Dr.
Nicholas Wright
and we're going to have
a little conversation about what
his role is as the director of Diversity,
(01:13):
Equity and Inclusion
at the Human Development Institute
at the University of Kentucky.
And also with me are some students.
We have Kylie and Jakob and Callie
and Boris in here, and my name is Erin,
and we're just going to have a little
chat about DEI.
(01:34):
So, Dr. Wright, how are you doing today?
I'm doing well, Erin. I'm doing well.
Thank you so much
for inviting me to this session.
We're really happy to talk to you.
I think we're just going to
kind of take turns asking you questions
and can I get a sense of what you do
and stuff like that.
And then you can talk about anything
we didn't get to.
Perfect. Sounds great.
(01:54):
So, Kylie,
do you want to start us off
with some question? Yeah.
So can you tell us a little bit
about your background
before coming to HDI?
Yeah.
So my background before
coming to the Human
Development Institute,
I think that that starts
at the University of Louisville.
So at the University of Louisville,
I was there for approximately ten years
and at the University of Louisville,
(02:16):
I had the opportunity
to work in a variety of settings
across higher education.
As I mentioned before, that I was working
in housing and residence
life and I was working
in the academic classroom
and I was working in admissions
and just a few other things over there.
But one of the most prominent roles
that I had was in the Disability
Resource Center.
So in the Disability Resource Center,
I had the opportunity
(02:37):
of increasing
accessibility and inclusivity
across the University of Louisville,
and that was something
that was extremely passionate to me.
I was there in that role
as a graduate assistant
and then was promoted to a disability
resources coordinator
and just completely fell in love with it.
From there,
I graduated with my bachelor's,
master's and doctorate
philosophy in counseling
(02:57):
personal services
for the specialization
in college student personnel.
So I knew that was
a really long name with it.
But from there I had the opportunity
of going to Minnesota,
and in Minnesota
I was at St Cloud State University,
and at St Cloud State University,
I was leading student accessibility services
as director
(03:18):
and in my role there as director,
I was able to
administrate the accessibility services
and accommodations for the university
at approximately 12,000 students
there. Working with them.
And then in addition to that,
also leading some of the work in the ADA
committee.
So what it was
was that the Americans With Disabilities Act
(03:40):
Committee at the University
was there for students, staff,
faculty and community members
to make sure
that they had
an accessible campus
and that everything was
was well for them.
So it was so nice to lead
that organization there.
To lead that group
of professionals and create
more of an accessible campus.
Very cool. That's a lot.
(04:00):
Yeah, it's a lot.
You have a lot of history
coming with you to this job,
which is great. Yeah. Thank you.
Yeah.
You kind
of already touched on this a little bit,
but I kind of want to ask, like,
what got you interested
in work specifically
regarding diversity,
equity and inclusion?
Yeah.
So when it comes to work
in diversity, equity and inclusion,
(04:23):
as I mentioned before,
I was at the University of Louisville,
but I didn't necessarily
say what I was there for my education.
I was actually
going for a Bachelor of Science
in Justice administration.
I planned on being a lawyer.
That was my plan.
That was my goal.
That was there.
As you may be able to tell this moment,
I'm not a lawyer.
It's not- it’s not the case at all.
(04:46):
Something happened in my life
that had changed
the way
that I navigated the realm
to change some of my goals
that were there.
I was in a accident,
in a motorcycle accident in Western Kentucky,
and in that motorcycle accident,
I - it’s an extremely strange event
where I was riding with
some friends one night
and there was an Amish horse and buggy
(05:09):
that was there.
There was ten motorcyclists.
The first nine went by,
scared the horse, and the horse
broke off in the buggy and hit me.
Next thing I know that I was life
flighted to Vanderbilt.
I had a traumatic brain injury and
woke up from a coma and
I had that experience.
That how challenging that was.
(05:29):
And I remember that
when I woke up from that coma,
I remember the first thing that I said
was, one, I checked on my motorcycle
to see if it was okay.
It was not. It was not okay.
But I knew at that moment
that another day wasn't promised.
So what I wanted to do is
I wanted to work
in DEI. I wanted to work,
in more specifically
in higher education.
Creating that inclusivity
(05:50):
for students on campus.
I wanted to make sure
that they had the opportunity to achieve
that bachelor's degree
that everybody is striving for.
Wow.
That's quite a
that's quite an interesting
backstory.
For your, your journey here. Yeah.
Thank you for sharing that with us.
Callie, did you have a
question you want to ask?
(06:10):
What is your
favorite thing about the job?
My favorite thing about my job,
I think that it would just
be the opportunity to work with diverse
individuals,
to work with people
and learn
more about their unique identities.
I think that's something
that's so exciting.
(06:30):
The reason why I say that is because
when it comes to my strengths
and my strengths quest,
some of my top strengths are, one (06:36):
maximizer,
but two is WOO.
WOO stands for winning others over.
So I really appreciate the opportunity
of winning others over
and having the opportunity
to break the ice
and relate
to people and connect to them
and at the Human Development
Institute, I have the opportunity to do that
because we have 350 plus employees here.
So although I have been here
(06:58):
close to
two years now,
I'm still meeting new people.
People may know of me
from staff meetings
or whatever else it is,
but I'm still meeting new people.
So it's still
every day
I get the opportunity
to meet someone new,
to win them over,
make sure they feel comfortable
and make sure that I can find
whatever it is
to ensure
that they can be their
most authentic self.
(07:18):
That's really cool.
And Callie you
are also working on things
this semester about
connecting with other people.
So that's kind of a really cool answer
to your question.
Callie's doing some practicum work around
how social connection
happens with gatherings
and how you like
how you kind of plan for that,
how you plan an event
(07:39):
or gathering or decide
what activities
that you do with other
people can affect your connections
with them.
You know, it's
not just about something
being a party
or being a place
that you go to hang out or whatever.
But those social connections
can be really important
for people
in other ways
that we don't always see or think about.
Yeah, yeah,
I think that
you're right about that, Erin.
(08:00):
And also, Callie,
when we think about
those social interactions
that we have, regardless
if it's a party or it's
just in a dyad or whatever it is,
having that social connection
with someone else,
that's what ensures
that we feel that sense
of belonging.
That’s what ensures
that we feel that sense of connection.
Absolutely. Agreed.
I want to ask you a little
bit about well,
(08:22):
as you obviously know, disabilities
often been left
out of conversations about DEI.
The history of DEI has not always
included disability
and certainly not fully
in encompassing
all different disabilities.
What do you think is the importance
of considering disability
as part of the discourse about DEI?
(08:44):
So when I think of disability,
I always tell people that disability
is such an important part of DEI,
over and over and over again.
What happens is that when we say the word,
the letters DEI
or when we say diversity,
equity and inclusion,
people automatically
think of apparent diversity,
They think about what they
(09:04):
what you may be able
to see from a billboard
or something like that,
which yes, that is also diversity that's
there. But
over and over again,
we ignore disabilities
and we don't think
to consider individuals
with disabilities
in that conversation surrounding DEI,
surrounding that.
I think that
(09:25):
when we think about disabilities,
we have to understand that
disabilities, your ability,
that's part of diversity.
The unique
strengths, weaknesses, identities
that people have, that's part of it.
When we think of equity
that has to be in disability,
that's there
ensuring that people have equal access
and whatever they need.
That way
(09:45):
they can fully be involved
in all aspects of life,
making sure
they have those resources,
and also understanding that we all don't
start from the exact same place.
And then the inclusion part as well,
because when we think about inclusion,
it's in the policies
but also in the interactions
that we have.
It's more
than just inviting
someone to the table to be there,
but you don't want to-
(10:06):
these individuals
to just feel tokenized in there.
You want to make sure
that their voices are heard,
that they are able to add
in all of their ideas,
their unique perspectives
into the conversations.
And that's- when we have disability
and we have that
as part of DEI when
when they had that
as part of the conversation,
that's when we can reach
(10:26):
a more holistic answer.
Absolutely.
Thank you.
So what is one thing
you would like people to know
about what you do?
I think I would like people to know
that we're all in this together.
And I've said this before,
(10:47):
but I'll say it again.
I think it's important
that we all understand
that we're all in this together, that
although I am the director of diversity,
Equity and Inclusion,
diversity, equity, inclusion work
that’s everybody's job.
That’s - everyone's in there.
Yes, it may be in my title,
but it's in your role.
It's in your
the work that you do,
even if you don't call it that,
(11:07):
even if you don't use those letters,
you're still doing that work.
You're still making sure
that we can have a more
inclusive environment.
You're still working to make sure
that we have that accessibility.
I think that with DEI
we can all serve as champions
with diversity, equity, inclusion.
We can all do this.
And it's important
that we are
becoming more
and more culturally component
each and every day
that we can do this work.
(11:28):
But as we do this,
I think that in our actions
we create that ripple effect.
It's something that goes out that
if we have those interactions,
let's say I have an interaction
with Callie that is inclusive, that
promotes belonging.
Now Callie's going to have
that conversation with Erin,
something like that, and it's
(11:49):
going to continue to ripple out.
And that's something
that is far away from a DEI director,
far away from that,
but it continues the ripple out
throughout the organization.
You've talked about connections
between DEI initiatives
and Universal design.
Can you talk about that a little bit?
I can.
So when we think about diversity,
(12:09):
equity and inclusion initiatives and how
that really relates to universal design,
we have to think about what universal is
and what universal design does.
So when we think about universal design,
we're thinking about ensuring that
products and services are available
and fit a wide range of people
(12:31):
really thinking about all people,
and that's people
with various identities and abilities
and everything that's there.
So universal
design really goes into that equity piece
that's there, that equity.
How I try to tell people about
universal design
is we're not just
talking about accommodations
that may be specific to one person.
(12:52):
We're talking about something
that fits really all people
that's in there.
Think about it
as in Netflix.
When Netflix,
and you're able to turn on
closed captions.
Many people turn on Netflix
closed captions
even if they are not deaf
or hearing impaired.
Even if that's not the case,
they still turn that on
because it helps them comprehend.
It helps them understand.
And by doing that, yes,
(13:13):
it may be
a little more work to add
those closed captions on there,
but by adding it on there now,
it appeals to a wider audience.
Now we're able to have those services
that are more accessible for everybody.
So that's the importance
of universal design
and that's the importance
of universal design
in diversity, equity,
and inclusion work
is that we're appealing
not just to a specific population,
we're going to everybody.
(13:36):
That is so true.
You helped teach the intro class
in Universal Design, HDI
350.
Why is that class important?
Yeah, it did.
So I helped with instruction with the HDI
350 course
and with that course
I think that it was incredibly important.
(13:58):
It's one of those courses
that has an interdisciplinary design.
It's one of those that we had
people that were undergraduate, but also
that were just graduate,
and also those students
who might be full time
students, also others that
have a background,
they have a professional experience
that are there.
And they're also taking these course
as well on the side,
(14:19):
those conversations that were in there,
I think that's what was most important.
The conversations that were had
that we were able
to have those interactions.
We talked before
about how the connections
work, how important those were.
And I think that that class
was one of those
that people are able
to have those interactions
through those discussions
being able
to learn about
how other people navigated
the world and navigated the system.
(14:40):
I think that's something
that was incredibly important to have.
So I'm really happy
that I had the opportunity
to instruct the class.
So one thing that I really have
an interest in
is higher education in general
and just people having accessibility
to that,
like being able
to come and get a bachelor's degree
and just further their education
for so many different like
(15:01):
there's just a lot that goes into it.
It's like a lot to explain.
But can you tell me like,
why you chose counseling
and personnel service?
Yeah, so it's counseling,
personal services,
with a specialization
in college student personnel.
Okay, that's there. Yeah.
So I definitely can tell you
a little bit
more about why I chose that,
because when we think about
some of those things,
I talked earlier about why
(15:21):
I decide to do this work in DEI.
The main focus
of that work wasn't DEI
initially, it was just college
student personnel,
just higher education,
making sure
that I could meet
and work with all students.
And I'm sure that we have all-
we're either students
or have been students before.
We understand how diverse students are.
And I think that's the reason
(15:41):
that DEI just fell in there,
that I found that I was doing this work.
And I was I was looking around
not too many people
who were doing the work.
And it's one of those situations where
I thought that someone
should be doing the work.
And I'm thinking, why not me now?
Why not me?
Why can't I do this work and making sure
that I can at least be a champion?
Because it's kind of those things
(16:01):
that teach the teacher
that we can all be in this together.
And I think that
being in this role,
I don't want to just
keep knowledge for myself.
I think that we're better in this world
when we work together,
when we have those opportunities
to share our knowledge
and not be selfish
but share the knowledge with it.
So I think that's the reason I do
this work, is to increase
the knowledge,
increase the cultural competency of higher education
(16:23):
of all professionals
that can be there
and make sure that we can support
each and every individual.
Thank you.
Well, Dr.
Wright, this has been
a really great conversation.
And I just want to ask you
if there is anything else
you haven't had
a chance to talk about that
you would like to share
with people listening?
I think something that we've been able
(16:44):
to touch on before
but haven't really been able to dive
deep in. I am extremely happy
that I can be my most authentic
self as I take on this work.
When we think about
in my authentic identity
as a multiracial, cisgendered man
who's in the millennial age group
that focuses on DEI
(17:04):
and also as a self advocate,
as someone with a disability,
I am happy to be-
to have the opportunity
to do this work,
creating more accessible,
inclusive campuses
and in the environments,
not just here at the Human
Development Institute
or at the University of Kentucky,
but also across the nation
in higher education,
making sure that each
and every student realizes
(17:26):
they are important
and then they can be their most authentic
selves that all time.
Thank you so much,
Dr.
Wright and Kylie, Jakob, Callie and Boris.
Thank you all for this conversation.
I really appreciate it.
Thank you.
Big thanks to Dr.
Nicholas Wright
and to the UK students involved
(17:47):
for this conversation.
This has been Community Spotlight.
Thanks for listening.
Popular Podcasts
True Crime Tonight
If you eat, sleep, and breathe true crime, TRUE CRIME TONIGHT is serving up your nightly fix. Five nights a week, KT STUDIOS & iHEART RADIO invite listeners to pull up a seat for an unfiltered look at the biggest cases making headlines, celebrity scandals, and the trials everyone is watching. With a mix of expert analysis, hot takes, and listener call-ins, TRUE CRIME TONIGHT goes beyond the headlines to uncover the twists, turns, and unanswered questions that keep us all obsessed—because, at TRUE CRIME TONIGHT, there’s a seat for everyone. Whether breaking down crime scene forensics, scrutinizing serial killers, or debating the most binge-worthy true crime docs, True Crime Tonight is the fresh, fast-paced, and slightly addictive home for true crime lovers.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.