2014 Community Forum
The Community Forum is a chance for the entire CSUS community to examine issues of diversity and inclusion. This year's Forum focused on issues related to gender and transgender identities.
Erin Berg, a transgender person living in the Bay Area, shared his story and perspective on gender identity. Erin was born and raised in San Francisco and is a graduate of Oberlin College with degrees in Neuroscience and American Studies. He is co-founder of Kipper Clothiers, a "custom suiting and shirting company that caters to the LGBTQ community."
This event was organized by the school’s Multicultural Leadership Team, a group of middle and upper school teachers and administrators. Students were prepped for the Forum in advance. After the Forum, students broke out into grade-level groups for discussion. Middle school teachers led the discussions with their students; 9th and 10th grades were facilitated by the advisors; and 11th and 12th grade discussion was facilitated by the organization “Outlet.” The purpose of the grade-level grouping was to allow for age appropriate conversations following Erin’s talk. Students had the opportunity to continue a dialog with Erin during lunch. The overall sentiment is that the event was a success. Director of Diversity Reese Willis commented, as a cisgender person, “I learned a lot preparing for and during the event.” (You can ask your student what cisgender means).
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This event was organized by the school’s Multicultural Leadership Team, a group of middle and upper school teachers and administrators. Students were prepped for the Forum in advance. After the Forum, students broke out into grade-level groups for discussion. Middle school teachers led the discussions with their students; 9th and 10th grades were facilitated by the advisors; and 11th and 12th grade discussion was facilitated by the organization “Outlet.” The purpose of the grade-level grouping was to allow for age appropriate conversations following Erin’s talk. Students had the opportunity to continue a dialog with Erin during lunch. The overall sentiment is that the event was a success. Director of Diversity Reese Willis commented, as a cisgender person, “I learned a lot preparing for and during the event.” (You can ask your student what cisgender means).