Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Committee – November 2025

(Terri Gulyas, Chair)

Our next meeting will be Tuesday, November 18, 6:30 PM via Zoom. This will be

Session #2 of our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion series. Kole Torres, the LWVWI DEI Manager, will present Charting Our Course: Aligning DEI with Values, Goals, and Actions. If you weren’t able to make it to our first session, that’s okay. My favorite part was at the end of the presentation when Kole gave us “calls to action” and talked about work that other Leagues are doing, including simple ways to make a difference. In this next session, she will show us the PIES chart, offering a wealth of information that we can use in program planning.

We’d love to see you there! Please invite friends, colleagues, or community members who share an interest in fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion in our region. For the Zoom link, email Terri.

We’ve been invited by AAUWGB to join their DEI discussions!

On Tuesday, November 11, you can join via Zoom at 7:30 PM.

AAUWGB would like to invite League members and their friends to join our discussions during our DEI committee meetings. The format has been studying a book in parts over the year. The first year we did a deep dive into The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones. Last year we discussed The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee. This year we are reading a book of essays Bone of the Bone: Essays on America by a Daughter of the Working Class by Sarah Smarsh. At our November meeting we will talk about pages 54–103. This section includes the essays: “Lede, Nutgraph, and Body,” “Poverty, Pride, and Prejudice,” “Linguistic Notice for Homo sapiens Known as ***,” “Believe It,” “The First Person on Mars,” and “The New Migrants.” Through these essays, Smarsh weaves together themes of class identity, media representation, resilience, and belonging. She examines how language and storytelling shape public perceptions of poverty, explores the strength found in marginalized communities, and highlights how migration—both physical and social—continues to redefine what it means to be “American.” Participants are encouraged to reflect on how Smarsh’s insights connect to our own local and national DEI work.