Week of April 7-11

Volume 12, Issue 9

“Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there’s no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic.”  —Laini Taylor, young adult author (Learn more)

Staff Spotlight: Elise Glenn

Elise is IUP’s chief diversity and inclusion officer and Title IX coordinator. She and her team work to ensure that IUP policies, practices, and activities support diversity, equity, and inclusion to foster a culture of belonging for both students and employees. She has been instrumental in introducing valuable programs and initiatives at IUP, including skill-building opportunities like inclusive teaching practices. She also has led campus-wide discussions, such as the mini-conference on intersectionality, and has organized programming that addresses important topics like race, gender identity, religious freedom, and free speech. Notable events include hosting exiled LGBTQIA Algerian writer Anour Rahmani and music ethnographer Moses Phillips, whose teaching on Lift Every Voice and Sing culminated in a moving performance of the Black national anthem. Elise played a key role in expanding the Difficult Dialogues program, in supporting diversity commissions and councils, and in launching the Community Response Team to address incidents of hate and bias. As Title IX coordinator, Elise oversees IUP’s policies and initiatives related to sexual misconduct and sexual discrimination. She works closely with various campus groups to raise awareness of those issues and to promote the prevention of sexual and dating violence. She also strives to change the campus culture to be more supportive and respectful of everyone. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Elise is a strong advocate for students and has created a space in which they feel comfortable confiding in her. She offers a blend of knowledge, care, and compassion, and it’s this unique combination that makes her an invaluable resource for the IUP community. She and her husband, Joe, have five grown children and four grandchildren. We thank you, Elise!

Digest issues are emailed every Monday morning. Send all information concerning your event to social-equity@iup.edu, and we will include it in the appropriate weekly issue. Please be sure to enter your event in the online DIVERSITY, STUDENT, and CENTRAL CALENDARS so that it will receive wider marketing and achieve greater attendance.

Elise Glenn

Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer/Title IX Coordinator

B-17 Delaney Hall

social-equity@iup.edu

title-ix@iup.edu