Take care of yourself and each other.
As the Derek Chauvin trial for the murder of George Floyd begins March 9, 2021, we urge everyone in our community to consider the impact that this trial will have on our students, staff, and faculty, especially Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Let us not approach this time as business as usual. Stop to check in with yourself and those around you. The emotions and pain surrounding the trial may affect how some of us show up in different spaces. Take care of each other, be kind, and listen for understanding. Take care of yourself, and surround yourself by love, community, and energy that feeds your soul.
We have provided a list of programs and opportunities below that range from conversation spaces to community care, self-care, healing, and opportunities to learn and understand the different components of the trial. To submit additional events/activities/resources please email equityandinclusion@stolaf.edu.
St. Olaf Resources, Events and Activities
Events and Activities
Community of Lights: Starting March 22 and going through April 19, we will hold every Monday from 12 to 2 p.m. as an opportunity for students, staff, and faculty to come together to heal, support each other, and never forget. The Taylor Center, Office of Student Activities, and Campus Ministry will collaborate in providing a space in The Pause for students, staff, and faculty to build community and process the trial through art and writing. There will be paper bags, as well as materials to write on and decorate the bags, so that community members can create paper bag luminaries. Each bag will be displayed during this period at Boe Chapel.
Understanding the Derek Chauvin Trial: As the trial develops, St. Olaf College is offering a webinar on March 25 at 3:30 p.m. Join Barry Cattadoris while he discusses the legal processes and what to expect in the weeks to come. You are encouraged to submit questions ahead of time here. Join us on Zoom.
Let’s Talk: Monday–Friday from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Let’s Talk is a 15-minute informal confidential consultation with licensed counselors from Boe House Counseling Center. Appointments are first come, first served. Students can use this space to process feelings about the Chauvin trial and its impact on them. Let’s Talk sessions are by phone or zoom at this time. Please email the Counseling Center at counselingcenterboehouse@stolaf.edu to schedule a same-day Let’s Talk session.
BIPOC Students Support Group: Thursdays from 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (starting March 18). This is a space for students to be heard and get support around issues of race, social justice, and any topics that are relevant to their life while trying to navigate a predominately white institution and our uncertain time. Please show up 5 minutes before the start time. Zoom Meeting ID: 931 7542 4992. (Facilitators: Boe House counselors Dr. Huy Le & Dr. Saras Bhadri)
Coming Soon: Boe House Counseling Center will hold specific spaces during its typical seminar time on Wednesday afternoons to respond to current events as needed and as they develop. More information to follow soon.
Wellness Center Office Hours: Mondays–Thursday 1–8 p.m. and Fridays 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Students can stop by for one-on-one support during the Wellness Center office hours or sign up online to connect with another student and chat. The space also offers coloring supplies, aromatherapy, grounding rocks, self-massage tools, and more to support students.
Wellness Events: The Wellness Center offers weekly online guided mindfulness on Thursdays from 9–9:30 p.m., as well as a plethora of online wellness events throughout the week. The Paw Program happens in the Pause each week from 4–5 p.m. as a means for students to de-stress and interact with dogs.
Resources
Wellness Website. Access resources on radical healing, self-care, communication, coping with stress and anxiety, and more.
Coming Soon. The current state of social justice uprisings in the United States has increased the burden that BIPOC people carry while navigating race in America. This is why The Taylor Center for Equity and Inclusion is creating this page to offer students BIPOC–centered wellness workshops and resources.
Events at Other Colleges, Universities, and the Community
Healing Our City. Beginning March 8 and continuing for 4-6 weeks, the city of Minneapolis and the names of George Floyd and Derek Chauvin will again feel like the center of the world’s gaze. In contrast, we will be focusing on a different center and we invite you to join us in our Healing Our City Virtual Prayer Tent. We are not ignoring the trial but taking advantage of this moment to address the injustice. We want to use the energy of this moment to go deep. We want to use this moment of openness and to take all this attention and energy to face what is truly offensive to God. In this way we pray we might do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly before God.
Direct Action & Mutual Aid for Justice Movements with Rahsaan Mahadeo and Duaba: Friday, March 19, 2021 from 12–2:30 p.m. This DML program will cover important tips on protesting and mutual aid and support students wanting to get involved in mobilization efforts.
Minnesota Private College Council: The institutions that are members of the Minnesota Private College Council are creating resources to address the issues raised by the Chauvin trial. Here are some that have been shared with the Council to be included in this public listing, to be of help to member institutions and others.
Concordia College in Moorhead invites you to join the Office of Diversity in conversation on ‘Counting: Remembering Victims of Police Violence from Michael Brown to George Floyd’. The Office of Diversity will host this conversation to help students, faculty, and staff prepare to follow the trial of Derek Chauvin. Dr. Tracie Keesee of the Center for Policing Equity will be the featured guest speaker. The conversation will address the history of the deaths of Black people in police custody from Michael Brown in 2014 to George Floyd in 2020.
Wednesday, March 24, 2021 from 7:30-9:00 pm
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