One Buchanan Cultural Competence Forum 2023
Submitted by Adam Burck, BASC Executive Director
* RESCHEDULED, FUTURE DATE TBD *
The public is invited and encouraged to attend One Buchanan’s Cultural Competence Forum on Saturday, April 22nd, 2023, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. The Forum will take place both in-person at the Buchanan Area Senior Center, 810 Rynearson Street, Buchanan, Michigan, and via Facebook Live on the One Buchanan Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/weareonebuchanan. In addition, a video recording of the Forum will be available to view afterwards on the One Buchanan You Tube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvVEnOMezxDH2-GN_i9VHlw, along with past Forums produced by One Buchanan.
The Forum will be led by an expert in Cultural Competence and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Danny E. Sledge, M.A., DEI Consultant. The workshop is participatory with a positive and uplifting program that encourages discussion and exploration of the issue and will:
- Heighten participant awareness of the concepts of “diversity” and “difference”, while recognizing that everyone in the group brings different levels of awareness based on their personal attitudes and experiences.
- To understand how individual backgrounds and environments shape beliefs and opinions (cultural fluency).
- To encourage a continuous dialogue, even after the training sessions are over.
- To give participants a place to start. Expect and accept non-closure.
The Cultural Competence Forum is made possible by the hard work of the Board and volunteers of One Buchanan and financial support from the Michigan Gateway Community Foundation. Forum partners include the Buchanan Area Senior Center and DPM Events. No RSVP is required, but, if you like, you may RSVP by calling the Buchanan Area Senior Center at 269-695-7119.
About the Speaker:
Danny E. Sledge, M.A., of Kalamazoo, Michigan, is a visionary and educator currently specializing in Diversity Equity and Inclusion consulting. Mr. Sledge pursued a long career in higher education at Western Michigan University and Lake Michigan College serving in various capacities, including faculty member, Director, Academic Advisor and Dean. Since 2007, he has specialized in providing individualized consulting services to educational institutions, non-profits, and for-profit corporations in the areas of diversity, inclusion and organizational change management.
Event Details:
- Who: One Buchanan, Buchanan Area Senior Center, and Michigan Gateway Community Foundation
- What: Cultural Competence Forum
- When: Saturday, April 22, 2023 – 2-5pm
- Where:
- In Person: Buchanan Area Senior Center ~ 810 Rynearson St, Buchanan MI 49107
- Virtually Live: One Buchanan Facebook Live https://www.facebook.com/weareonebuchanan
- After the Event: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvVEnOMezxDH2-GN_i9VHlw
- Details:
- No RSVP is required, but, if you like, you may RSVP by calling the Buchanan Area Senior Center at 269-695-7119.
About One Buchanan: One Buchanan started in 2016 as a grass roots community organization focused on diversity and inclusion issues and was subsequently adopted by the City of Buchanan as a City Board. One Buchanan Vision is to be the catalyst to create an inclusive community which values and celebrates our diversity so together we can thrive. One Buchanan Mission is to promote awareness of our rich diversity through education, activities and programs that strengthen an inclusive community. One Buchanan Core Beliefs include valuing our diversity of race, culture, ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical ability, mental ability, age, socioeconomic status, and housing status; believing in a community that provides equitable resources and opportunities; believing that through listening with empathy we are able to connect and understand our diverse perspectives; and to promote a sense of belonging through acknowledging and celebrating our differences.
www.facebook.com/weareonebuchanan
About Buchanan Area Senior Center: Buchanan Area Senior Center provides a complete facility, a friendly and efficient staff, and active volunteers that enhance the quality of life of seniors in our community. We offer programs and services designed to promote physical, social, and mental well-being, including exercise, recreation, and crafts, as well as Senior Nutrition Services, food commodities, and a Senior Community Garden.
About Michigan Gateway Community Foundation: From our single community beginning in October of 1977, we have evolved into a full service, accredited, and standards compliant Foundation serving Southern Berrien County, focused on Niles and Buchanan, and all of Cass County. Our mission: fostering a community of philanthropy, for good, forever. Strong community support has steadily grown the Foundation. We now have over 135 separate funds, with new ones added every year. The largest single gift to the Foundation was transferred in 2016 from the estate of Walter E. Schirmer, Jr., son of one of the original founders of the Buchanan Area Foundation, which today is Michigan Gateway Community Foundation. In excess of $8,000,000, the gift funds the Buchanan Promise, a place-based scholarship for graduates of Buchanan High School. The Foundation doubled in size with this gift, today holding endowment assets totaling more than $25,000,500.
Contact: Michael P. Rowland, President & Chief Executive Officer
The Buchanan Chronicle 