Events and Workshops
Student Life aims to make the campus community a more inclusive and equitable place where every student feels welcome and comfortable being themselves. Student Life runs events and discussion groups where students can share, find community, learn and promote a culture of empathy across the university.
Let’s Talk Equity
Let's Talk Equity is a series focused on encouraging conversations about equity and inclusion. Join the conversation online through Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by following @OTStudentLife and at the following open discussion groups.
Not Another Black Life Discussion Group
Schedule to be determined
This discussion group is a space for Black students and allies to come together for support, education, and collective action in response to recent and historical events of anti-Black police violence. We will discuss current events, self-care, how to take action, and allyship both from white folks and non-Black people of colour.
EXPRESS INTEREST IN NOT ANOTHER BLACK LIFE discussion group
Pride Space Discussion Group
Thursdays from 4 to 5 p.m. between May 21 and August 27, 2020
This is a virtual space for 2SLGBTQ+ students and allies to come together, support each other and participate in interactive activities using Google Meets.
Equity Talks
Scheduled based on student interest
Equity Talks is a discussion group for students who support equity. It provides the opportunity to discuss current hot topics on equity-related issues. This group plans to resume in the fall semester but will be scheduled in the summer if sufficient interest is demonstrated.
Express interest in Equity Talks
Racialized Students' Discussion Group
Scheduled based on student interest
The Racialized Students’ Discussion Group seeks to provide racialized students with the space to discuss issues impacting racialized communities based on their lived experiences. This group plans to resume in the fall semester but will be scheduled in the summer if sufficient interest is demonstrated.
Express interest in the Racialized Students' Discussion Group
Webinar: Hello, my name is...
This webinar examined: How does identity shape interactions and how do interactions shape identity? What barriers and microaggressions do students from equity-seeking groups face at Ontario Tech? Students will share their perspectives and experiences about the current climate of equity at the university to answer these questions and more.
Subsequently, the students will make recommendations on how staff, faculty and senior administration can incorporate simple principles to facilitate more equitable interactions with students at Ontario Tech.
The Hello, my name is... equity webinar took place on May 13, 2020. For more information, contact equity@ontariotechu.ca.
View a recording of the webinar
RISE: Respecting Individuals and Supporting Equity
The RISE (Respecting Individuals and Supporting Equity) Program is a suite of workshops that provide training and education on bystander intervention skills in order to prevent and respond to discrimination and harassment. Participants will receive foundational knowledge on how oppression manifests, and what they can do on an individual level to foster a safer and inclusive community at Ontario Tech. Students who complete the relevant requirements will be eligible to receive a RISE Certificate.
Register for a RISE workshop on the Student Life Portal
RISE Certificate
As an additional benefit of your participation in the RISE workshops, we offer students the opportunity to earn a RISE Certificate confirming attendance and participation in the RISE programming.
In order to earn the certificate, you must complete the following:
- Attend the RISE: Let's Talk Equity workshop;
- Attend the RISE: First Peoples workshop;
- Attend four of the other nine workshops; and
- Complete the mandatory online reflections (short answer reflection questions).
Please note, you are responsible for ensuring that you record your attendance with the session facilitator for certificate requirement verification. To register for the certificate, please email equity@ontariotechu.ca with your full name, university email and sessions/dates attended.
Workshops
To find upcoming dates and times of RISE workshops, visit the Student Life Portal. Below you will find a description of the different RISE workshops that we offer.
RISE: Let's Talk Equity
Participants will be introduced to bystander intervention skills that they can use to prevent and respond to discrimination and harassment. It is recommended that participants complete this workshop before attending other RISE workshops.
RISE: Anti-Ableism
Participants will identify stereotypes targeting people with disabilities, and discuss known cases of discrimination and harassment that have targeted people with disabilities.
RISE: Anti-Racism
Participants will identify stereotypes targeting racialized people, and discuss known cases of discrimination and harassment that have targeted racialized communities.
RISE: Feminism
Participants will identify stereotypes targeting women and discuss the importance of feminism as a tool of action to challenge sexism.
RISE: First Peoples
Participants will be introduced to the history of Indigenous peoples in Canada, and engage in interactive activities addressing the negative impact colonization had and continues to have on Indigenous peoples today.
RISE: Gender Identity
Participants will discuss the oppression of the transgender community focusing and the role that gender stereotypes play in the creation and manifestation of misconceptions about gender.
RISE: Health Equity
Participants will learn about the various social determinants of health, and the impact that systems of oppression have on individual and group health.
RISE: Let's Talk Sex
Participants will discuss various topics such as consent, relationships and sexual health.
RISE: Religion and Spirituality
Participants will identify stereotypes stemming from religious and spiritual differences, and discuss known cases of discrimination and harassment that have targeted religious and spiritual communities.
RISE: Sexual Orientation
Participants will identify stereotypes based on sexual orientation (ie. lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, etc), and discuss known cases of discrimination and harassment that have targeted these communities.
RISE: Sexual Violence Prevention
Participants will identify ways that they can prevent, intervene and respond to sexual violence, and discuss topics such as rape culture, consent and the spectrum of sexual violence.
If you have any questions about the RISE Program, contact equity@ontariotechu.ca.
