Upcoming Trainings and Workshops
Rep. Peter DeFazio Annual Lecture: National Politics with E.J. Dionne Jr.
April 10, 2025
5:00–6:15 p.m.
175 William W. Knight Law Center
UO Libraries has partnered with the UO’s Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics to launch an annual lecture series in honor of University of Oregon alumnus and retired U.S. Representative Peter DeFazio. The DeFazio Annual Lecture promotes public knowledge of politics, governance, civic engagement, and social history by spotlighting esteemed speakers with expertise in the policy areas that DeFazio advanced during his congressional career.
Please join us for the inaugural lecture delivered by E.J. Dionne Jr., nationally recognized journalist and political commentator for The Washington Post. Dionne is a distinguished government professor at Georgetown University, a visiting professor at Harvard University, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and a frequent commentator on politics for National Public Radio and MSNBC.
Intertwined 2025: A Celebration of Stories and Community
May 13 & 14, 2025
5:00–6:15 p.m.
Ford Alumni Center
Join us for the 9th Annual Intertwined event at the University of Oregon. Intertwined is more than just an event; it embodies the spirit of flourishing—holistic development and thriving for every individual, where we come together to enhance Love, Authenticity, Courage, and Empathy (LACE) on campus. This two-night celebration features live personal storytelling from diverse members of our community. By fostering growth, well-being, trust, and a sense of belonging, we strengthen our community through shared experiences. Intertwined invites us to listen, connect, and contribute to a richer collective human experience. Join us in celebrating the power of stories that unite us all!
Recurring Trainings and Workshops
Office of the Vice President, Portland
ProDUCKtive Conversations
Weeks 2 and 7 each term
Sessions that encourage faculty and staff reflection, discussion, and practice with DEI strategies in safe spaces.
Workplace Harassment and Discrimination Prevention Training
45-minute training, synchronous or asynchronous, providing information on how to recognize workplace harassment, discrimination, and retaliation, as well as employee reporting obligations. Helps participants identify what constitutes appropriate workplace conduct, how to recognize harassing behaviors and discrimination, how to handle harassment situations, and where and how to make a report.
Register for Workplace Harassment and Discrimination Prevention Training
Employee Engagement Workshop, Supervisor Development
Half-day workshop for supervisors that provides a guide to understanding and implementing employee engagement strategies. Focuses on employee engagement fundamentals, supervisor’s sphere of influence, and building a culture of engagement.
Register for Supervisor Development Workshop
New Faculty and Staff Community Orientation and Resource Fair
2-hour bi-annual event hosted in fall and spring term for new faculty and staff starting in the past 6 months. Partnered with the Office of the Provost. Engagement and onboarding opportunity for faculty and staff to make connections, gain a cultural understanding about UO by meeting and interacting with representatives from more than 40 diverse UO programs, and attend information sessions about valuable university support networks and resources. Represented programs include UO DEI and strategies groups, student support organizations, communication and services, cultural programs, employee representation and governing bodies, athletics and recreation, HR and business programs, and safety and security resources.
Register for New Faculty and Staff Community Orientation and Resource Fair
Recent Trainings and Workshops
Debrief Session: Understanding Antisemitism and Islamophobia
March 20, 2025
This session connected members of the UO community to debrief the “Understanding Antisemitism” and “Understanding Islamophobia” workshops. We reflected on our own learning from these sessions and explored together how we can individually and collectively make campus more inclusive.
Understanding Antisemitism with Project Shema
March 17, 2025
Over the last year, there has been a dramatic and global increase in anti-Jewish harm incidents from hate speech and harassment to violence. Since 2023, the FBI has tracked a 63% rise in anti-Jewish hate crimes. This briefing was developed after October 2023 to help participants navigate the current moment as upstanders and allies for the Jewish community. It provides context on Jewish identity, what antisemitism is, and how anti-Jewish ideas are showing up in discourse around Israel and Palestine. Our proven strategy for identifying Jewish harm nurtures empathy for all people, creates space for nuance, and respects the politics and values of everyone in the room. Participants leave with a toolkit to understand and identify anti-Jewish harm. Half the session is dedicated to a brave space conversation and Q&A.
Register for Understanding Antisemitism with Project Shema
Can Nonprofits Do Political and Policy Advocacy? Nonprofits and Politics in Comparative Perspective
March 12, 2025
Recent controversies in the United States and other countries have involved nonprofit organizations that are involved in political advocacy and political activities. In this talk Mark Sidel, a specialist in these issues, discusses how the United States and several other countries try to set policy and law on the extent of nonprofit political advocacy and activities.
Mark Sidel is Doyle-Bascom Professor of Law and Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an elected member of the American Law Institute. He serves on the boards of the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, the China Medical Board, The Rights Practice (US), and other organizations.
Understanding Islamophobia with Islamic Networks Group
March 10, 2025
In 2023, Muslim civil rights organizations received reports of over 8000 anti-Muslim hate incidents. Despite the high ratio of unreported incidents, the number increased by 56% compared to the previous year. Half of these incidents occurred between October and December 2023. This year, the surge in anti-Muslim hate that erupted last October continues in the first half of the 2024. From January to June 2024, the same civil rights organizations documented nearly 5,000 incoming complaints, a sixty-nine percent increase over the same period in 2023. The experience of students and employees during this cycle of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab hate remain the standout trends compared to past cycles. Islamophobia, a centuries old framework, shapes how Islam and Muslims are perceived in the US and globally. This seminar explores the roots and dominant tropes of Islamophobia, examining its impact on Muslim and Arab American communities. It concludes by proposing strategies to combat Islamophobia at both interpersonal and institutional levels.
Exploring Muslim Americans, Their Faith, and Islamophobia with Islamic Networks Group
February 26, 2025
This engaging seminar offers an opportunity to deepen your understanding of Muslim Americans, their diverse experiences, and their faith while addressing the critical issue of Islamophobia. Through thought-provoking discussions, real-world stories, and interactive activities, participants will:
- Gain insight into the beliefs, practices, and cultural richness of Muslim communities in America.
- Explore the unique contributions of Muslim Americans across various fields and the challenges they face due to stereotypes and misinformation.
- Unpack the roots and manifestations of Islamophobia, including its impact on individuals, communities, students and workplaces.
- Learn actionable strategies to counter Islamophobia and foster a culture of inclusion, empathy, and solidarity.
Whether you're an educator, staff person, ally, or simply someone seeking to expand your perspective, this seminar provides the tools and understanding needed to build bridges and stand against prejudice. Workshop Leader: Zachary Markwith is the Deputy Director at Islamic Networks Group or ING. He received his PhD in Islamic Studies from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. He also earned an MA (cum laude) in Comparative Religious Studies at the George Washington University and a BA in Islamic and Near Eastern Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has taught classes on Islam and other world religions at the University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara University, and the Graduate Theological Union.
Register for Exploring Muslim Americans, Their Faith, and Islamophobia with Islamic Networks Group
Write@Work
Wednesdays Through November 20, 2024
Watch the Write@Work Introduction Video
A series of virtually guided 60-minute journaling sessions designed to help participants explore, practice, and reflect upon focused topics. The fall session will focus on the principles of building and sustaining flourishing communities. Each session builds on the previous one, fostering personal growth, professional development, and community connection.
African American Workshop & Lecture Series (AAWLS)
Public Lecture:
“Beyond Voting: Models for Civic Action From Tulsa’s Black Wall Street”
Guest Lecturer: Victor Luckerson
As Americans from all walks of life move through the 2024 electoral process, many are looking for models of healthy engagement in the midst of the prevailing division and conflict. In Built From the Fire, a 2023 NY Times best- selling book, Journalist Victor Luckerson shares insights from his research on the 1921 race riots in Greenwood, Oklahoma. There, members of the Black community deployed tactics beyond electoral politics to knock down barriers and create a more just, flourishing and inclusive community.
In his forthcoming talk, Luckerson is scheduled to share three models of civic engagement that the Black community in Greenwood, Oklahoma utilized to safeguard and advance democracy as well as justice for all. Indeed, they are possible ways for all of us to think innovatively, creatively and with hope about the promise of healthy civic engagement now and in the future.
Post-Election Roundtable
A panel of experts will discuss election takeaways and what comes next, featuring former Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio, Professor and Associate Dean of SOJC Portland Regina Lawrence, and UO professors Alison Gash, Chandler James, Neil O’Brian, and Daniel Tichenor. Sponsored by the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics.
Post-Election Teaching Forum
Our goals are to come together post-election as a teaching community to discuss how unfolding national events are impacting our classes and to create a forum for strategy sharing, asking questions, and offering collective support. All faculty and graduate employees welcome.
Hosted by the Division of Equity and Inclusion, College of Arts and Sciences, and UO Teaching Engagement Program.
Understanding and Fighting Anti-Semitism, led by Project Shema
A workshop for university leaders was held in July. Additional workshops are being scheduled for Fall term.
Understanding and Fighting Islamophobia and Anti-Arab Bias, led by Islamic Networks Group
A workshop for university leaders was held in September. Additional workshops are being scheduled for Fall term.
IntroDucktion Orientation “Protect the Flock” session for parents, led by the Dean of Students leadership, Prevention Services, and UOPD
The sessions featured a panel discussion covering last spring’s events, and our ongoing commitment to fostering the free exchange of ideas on campus as part of our educational mission, while prioritizing the safety of our community.
Teaching in Turbulent Contexts: A Faculty Panel Reflects on Principled Approaches
Join us as we take stock of the national and international contexts impacting our teaching this term, from the U.S. presidential election to ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The Teaching Engagement Program (TEP) will share a set of broad principles that could be enacted across courses and disciplines, and a panel of faculty colleagues will discuss the specific ways they interpret, enact, and deepen those principles in their day-to-day teaching. All faculty and graduate employees welcome.
Hosted by the Division of Equity and Inclusion, College of Arts and Sciences, and UO Teaching Engagement Program.
Pizza and Politics
The focus is around how to have productive interpersonal discussions with friends and family when there are differences in political views, such as when our students go home for Thanksgiving break and may have very different views than some of their family members. There will be 5 steps given to having these discussions, and do some practice with scenarios. The focus is on interpersonal skill building, and do not refer to any specific type of political discourse.
Playback Theatre for Belonging for University Employees
Playback Theatre is a social action theater technique in which participants tell life stories and then see them enacted on stage. It is a form of dialogue and empathy-building. It is now practiced in over 70 countries around the world in theaters, classrooms, hospitals, shelters, prisons, community centers.
Playback Theatre for Belonging Community Performance
Playback Theatre is a social action theater technique in which participants tell life stories and then see them enacted on stage. It is a form of dialogue and empathy-building. It is now practiced in over 70 countries around the world in theaters, classrooms, hospitals, shelters, prisons, community centers.
Playback Theatre for Belonging for UO Students (partnership with Wayne Morse Center)
Playback Theatre is a social action theater technique in which participants tell life stories and then see them enacted on stage. It is a form of dialogue and empathy-building. It is now practiced in over 70 countries around the world in theaters, classrooms, hospitals, shelters, prisons, community centers.
Teaching in Turbulent Contexts: Role-Playing Classroom Scenarios
Rehearsals for Life will enact a series of teaching scenarios that bring national and international political contexts into the classroom. In this interactive workshop, you will work with colleagues and actors to explore the gains and losses of different teaching choices and practice turning fraught classroom moments into opportunities to deepen engagement, learning, and trust. All faculty and graduate employees welcome.
Hosted by the Division of Equity and Inclusion, College of Arts and Sciences, and UO Teaching Engagement Program.
Pre-Election Teaching Forum
Our goals are to come together pre-election as a teaching community to discuss how unfolding national events are impacting our classes and to create a forum for strategy sharing, asking questions, and offering collective support. All faculty and graduate employees welcome.
Hosted by the Division of Equity and Inclusion, College of Arts and Sciences, and UO Teaching Engagement Program.