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Centro para la Justicia Social

Intercultural Development as the Foundation
The Center for Social Justice facilitates intentional, inclusive, systemic, and systematic intercultural development to prepare and support Excelsior’s and its community’s participation in our critical justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion work. To anchor this effort, Ӱԭ pursues the ever-evolving goal of becoming a multicultural organization, which according to Jackson & Holvino’s refers to:
- Inclusivity: An organization that strives to include members of all groups by treating them fairly, offering them equal access to opportunities, and representing them at all organizational levels and functions;
- Contribution: An organization that leverages the diversity of knowledge and perspectives its different groups bring to shape its strategy, work, management, operating systems, and its core values and norms for success;
- Impact: An organization that seeks to improve itself and enhance its competitive advantage by advocating and practicing social justice and diversity, equity and inclusion within and beyond the organization.
Strategic Initiatives
One key community development effort is the facilitation of rope teams. We define rope teams as representation and support villages around our students and community members based on the dimensions of identity that matter to them and to allies. Each rope team has a curated and dynamic webpage in the with current and interactive information, resources, connections, experiential learning, and community engagement opportunities relevant to the rope team’s focus. The Center for Social Justice facilitates programming for each rope team, including speakers, panels, conversations, and community engagement experiences.
One key dialogue facilitation effort is the . In partnership with the , the YWCA of the Greater Capital Region, and the , and based on the premises of , the Center for Social Justice hosts quarterly speakers and monthly dialogue sessions on democratic engagement. The center also facilitates on a regular basis.
The integrates the , the , and the models to help us challenge our assumptions, sensitize our behavior, and work together on becoming a multicultural organization. Students learn about and apply the JEDI Framework as part of the Cornerstone required course, faculty are introduced to the framework as part of their onboarding, and every unit implements an annual application of the framework, such as inclusive communication guidelines and self-assessment based on the .
Examples of JEDI integration efforts include JEDI data collection, disaggregation, and analysis; intercultural development as part of faculty onboarding, ongoing learning, dialogue, and professional development; the JEDI Framework and rope teams exploration as part of the student orientation and the Cornerstone course required for undergraduate students; the review and enhancement of the recruitment and retention of diverse faculty; etc.
Excelsior’s social responsibility and community engagement activity includes during which dozens of Excelsior community members volunteer at regional and national community organizations; the through which the Excelsior community annually donates more than 1,000 snacks for students in need; and the Center for Social Justice’s membership in the through which, in partnership with mission partner , the center is developing a community space for the promotion, dialogue, training, and support of hate and bias prevention.
The Center for Social Justice has formed and chairs the Capital Region JEDI Leadership Consortium, a group of more than 40 leaders of JEDI efforts in educational and nonprofit organizations of the region. The Center for Social Justice is in the process of forming the Capital Region Mentoring Consortium, a group of mentor program leaders including the , , , , and others. In addition, the Center for Social Justice has joined key collaboratives such as the , the , and the . The Center for Social Justice also published a , , and 20 columns in on inclusive leadership.
Ӱԭ and the Center for Social Justice have partnered with the , , , and other community organizations and individual donors to engage a pilot cohort in the ¡Adelante! program. ¡Adelante! is a language bridge that combines an industry-focused English-as-a-Second-Language curriculum with Excelsior degree-required courses in Spanish to facilitate the linguistic readiness and academic confidence Spanish-as-a-first-language students may need to participate and succeed in higher education. The ¡Adelante! pilot recommends one of two follow-up pathways: an Associate in Science in Health Sciences or an Associate in Applied Science in Administrative/Management Studies.
The Center for Social Justice has delivered keynote remarks and facilitated workshops at symposia and professional development programs, including hosting its at the Ӱԭ campus. The Center for Social Justice has also facilitated microaggression, bullying, and macroaggression prevention training for New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision leadership and employees, including the design, development, and preparation for the implementation of the department’s 2026 implicit bias training.