Purdue News

Diversity workshops help make a world of difference My name is Thiwasha. It's a nice, unique name and always a discussion point. It is also the first hurdle I face as I prove myself as an African-American woman, a 1996 Purdue chemical engineering graduate and a plant engineer for the Elanco Animal Health, a division of Eli Lilly and Co. at Tippecanoe Labs in Lafayette, Ind. People make assumptions from hearing my name. People I've known for years still mispronounce it or call me something different. How would you feel if people couldn't get your name right or did not take the time to learn it? How would you feel if people couldn't get your name right or did not take time to learn it? Small as it may seem, this is one example of how racial assumptions can lead to insensitivity, exclusion, low expectations or worse. Beyond the white robes and skinheads, there are less overt forms of racial, gender and ethnic bias much harder to isolate and eliminate. Imagine people expressing surprise at your academic accomplishments because you are an African American or being praised because you possess strong leadership skills "for a woman." Even in 2001, people are not used to seeing a minority woman engineer in my position. But things are changing. But things are changing. In 1998, the Purdue Schools of Engineering began a long-term commitment to develop awareness and sensitivity to minority and gender issues when Dean Richard Schwartz initiated a series of diversity forums. Since then, more than one-third of Purdue's 270 engineering faculty have participated in one of these programs. About 20 to 45 people participate in each of the intense diversity workshops, which are directed by trained national facilitators from diverse backgrounds. These two-day, off-campus seminars enable open and sometimes painfully honest dialogue between races and genders. The goal is to teach each dean, department head, faculty and key staff member to take individual responsibility for fostering an environment of inclusion and diversity in the Schools of Engineering -- and beyond. Minority Purdue alumni are invited to share their collegiate and professional experiences as well. These workshops are sponsored by Purdue and supported, in part, by DuPont, DaimlerChrysler, Eli Lilly and Co. and Procter & Gamble Co., companies that value and receive value from a diverse work force. Earlier this year, I was invited to attend one of the diversity workshops. The program content presented us with cultural and historical information about Native Americans, European Americans, African-Americans, Asians, Latin Americans and various international groups. We explored how different cultures view the world and saw a glimpse of the world from inside the skin of other races and ethnicities. No topic was taboo. There was time to talk and time to listen. And time to soul search. We heard: Resentment from the Middle Eastern professor who fled persecution in his homeland only to be presumed to be a terrorist on multiple occasions at various international airports simply because of his ethnic and racial profile. Bemused resignation and resilience from an African researcher seeking information at a library and then misidentified as a bothersome grad student -- not the highly sought, brilliant educator and administration candidate that he was. Confusion from a well-meaning white Midwestern male staff member who experienced "minority status" at length for the first time, and his shock of recognition at the prejudice inherent in power and privilege by virtue of being born a member of the culturally dominant group. Patience and hope from an Israeli professor who measures the painful process of positive social and moral change by millennia instead of months or years or decades or centuries. We learned that despite some earnest, if uneven, efforts to eradicate the fear of difference from the human heart, racial prejudice and gender bias are often expressed by people of good intention and embedded in all our cultural institutions. We learned that the best intentions -- without respect and understanding -- can create terrible results. We learned that the only way to change behavior is to change attitudes. Perhaps most importantly, workshop participants learned to listen to each other without interruption. In our diversity, we found common ground. In our commonality, we learned to accept, embrace and even celebrate our own and each other's differences. And almost everybody learned how to pronounce my name. (That's "Ta-WA-sha.") What we learn, we teach. Those who teach at universities are the key to a welcoming and diverse world. They teach tomorrow's leaders. Companies such as DuPont, an original supporter of the diversity initiatives, and my employer, Eli Lilly, encourage these types of workshops because they want newly hired graduates prepared to enter business with the skills and attitudes that promote diversity. As an alumna, I will do my part by returning to Purdue every chance I get to support the people and programs that helped me succeed. Based on my experience, I can tell tomorrow's engineers that programs like Purdue's diversity workshops are helping make a world of difference. There is still a long road ahead. The pitfalls are ignorance, fear, denial, complacency and resistance. The path forward is marked by awareness and action; by open minds and open hearts. They say the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. I am proud my company and my alma mater are a step ahead and taking great strides in the right direction toward a more tolerant, diverse future. Change takes place slowly. But it is happening -- one heart, one person, one university, one company at a time. -- Thiwasha Harper is a 1996 graduate with a bachelor of science degree in agricultural and biological engineering in the area of food process engineering. She also is a member of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), an organization founded at Purdue. Thiwasha is married to Jamoni Harper, a Purdue mechanical engineering graduate. Story by Purdue News Service Photograph by David Umberger PHOTO CAPTION: Thiwasha Harper, shown at the entry to the Black Cultural Center, says she is proud of her alma mater's efforts toward a more tolerant, diverse future. Relative Link: Forums teach faculty, staff to lead changes for diversity To the Purdue News and Photos Page