DEI Series: A Meaningful Approach to DEI & Students’ Career Decision-Making

Career Level: Basic-, intermediate-, and advanced-level career services and university relations and recruiting professionals
Competency: Program design, implementation, and evaluation
Fee: FREE (member); $69 (nonmember);

Summary
Thanks to our sponsor, Chevron, this event is free to NACE members.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is a core value for today’s generation. According to gallup.com, Gen Z and millennials now make up nearly half (46%) of the full-time workforce in the United States. SDSU career services serves a highly diverse student population. They are working actively and diligently to support students who identify with communities that are historically underrepresented in professional settings, i.e. communities of color, military veterans, the LGBTQIA+ community, and those with varying abilities, as they explore and discover where identity and career intersect, while discussing how cultural influences can lead to empowered career-decision making.

Throughout this session, participants will engage in dialogue to understand theoretical foundations that SDSU career services has implemented to design DEI programming, including theories on cultural humility, and the importance of being “other-oriented” to address issues of inequities in the workplace and in society. Tenets of experiential learning support student learning holistically as it highlights the importance of direct experience, and in some ways, challenge students, as they find inequities in society and the professional world.

The presenters will also explore what diversity, equity, and inclusion means as it relates to the importance of having student representation from different lived experiences to guide DEI education through career development. Participants will investigate what it means to have intentional, meaningful engagement with employers, who increasingly highlight DEI within their recruitment initiatives. Examples of such events will be highlighted.

Following this program, you will be able to:
- Engage in dialogue of key theoretical foundations that are used to seek funding and create programming for DEI and career development;
- Identify innovative and practical programming ideas to connect student engagement, career development, and DEI; and
- Identify inclusive and equitable leading practices and strategies for collaborations that support student career and identity exploration.
Presenters

Ramona Acuna, Career Program and Outreach Counselor, San Diego State University
Ramona Acuna has served as the career programming and employer relations counselor at SDSU career services for more than four years, and has served students in career services at various institutions for more than 10 years. Facilitating potentially life-changing career connections between students and employers motivates her to dig deeper and conceptualize innovative programming opportunities. She is especially drawn to projects that serve students who have been historically underrepresented in professional settings. She currently serves on the MPACE PAC South Programming Committee. She earned her M.S. in college counseling and student development from Azusa Pacific University.

Melissa Gonzalez, Assistant Director, HSI and Regional Affairs, [ARCHIVES]
Melissa Gonzalez has more than 11 years of higher education experience and a passion to holistically support students and colleagues in their journey. In her current role, she focuses on supporting SDSU’s status as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Most recently, she served as the career development and diversity engagement coordinator at SDSU career services, providing career counseling through a cultural wealth lens and a strengths-based approach. Additional experiences include the implementation of the first Commuter Learning Community and the opening of the Commuter Resource Center at SDSU. She is committed to her community through her volunteer work with MANA de San Diego (focused on empowering Latinas in education, leadership development, and more), as well as the Mexi'cayotl Indio Cultural Center, which focuses on preserving and teaching Indigenous traditions and dances from Mexico. She is a double alumna of SDSU with an M.A. in educational leadership/student affairs.

Claudia Martinez, Experiential Learning Specialist, San Diego State University
Claudia Martinez leads initiatives related to internships, community engagement, and the campus career readiness certificate program. She also leads educational programming, which connects social justice, soft skills development. and careers. Prior to joining the higher ed field, she served with AmeriCorps through Hawai’i and Pacific Islands Campus Compact (HIPICC) at Kapi’olani Community College. She holds a master’s degree in educational leadership from San Diego State University. Her professional affiliations include the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), Mountain Pacific Association of Colleges & Employers (MPACE). She serves her community as an adviser for the nonprofit MANA de San Diego, supporting its mission to empower Latinas through education, leadership development, advocacy, and community service. Having lived in three different continents, she values the impact life experience has in individuals’ career journeys and lifelong learning. She is a proud first-generation college graduate and a proud mother.