People yearn to feel connection and a sense of belonging, even as they pursue their individual goals. This is especially true at the University of Denver, where we create knowledge, strive to have an impact, and are dedicated to the public good.
Community + Values is the focused and empathic work we are doing as a community, to strengthen ourselves from within. We strive to be doers, amplifiers, and connectors in our community. The initiative began in spring 2019 as a way to compose a collective narrative that creates a greater sense of shared values and belonging. We have invited and connected with thousands of faculty, staff, students and alumni to contribute their voices and energy and help us explore. And, that’s exactly what they have been doing.
The result has been a series of community conversations, events and initiatives that have helped us understand the opportunities we have as a community to create a greater sense of belonging for all. We know that DU does not yet feel like “home” to everyone who wants to belong, and we want to change that. We also know that many already feel entirely comfortable at DU, and we want to amplify those experiences.
We want to hear from you. Your voice and your heart belong in this work. DU is your home. It’s our home.
The Community + Values Graduate Fellows in Human Resources & Inclusive Community will serve as the project management support for the initiative as a whole. The Community + Values initiative is an initiative to build community and a sense of belonging and to explore what values we hold. We carry out this work through different events, programs, initiatives, and communications.
Visit the link below to learn more about this fellowship opportunity. The priority deadline for first applicant reviews is August 2, 2023. If you have any questions, please email Chase McNamee, Sr. Project Manager at chase.mcnamee@du.edu.
To honor individual and communal wellness through these times, C+V is excited to announce the launch of the this hub, a C+V initiative designed to share and uplift opportunities for the DU community for mindfully, creatively, bravely, and compassionately navigating these challenging times together, as a community. This initiative will serve as a resource hub for DU that will highlight ways to engage and build community while focusing on our wellness as we continue to traverse these changing times.
Want to stay in touch about C+V events, programming, and resources? Join our C+V listserv.
Who are we as a community?
Through this pathway, we actively explore and build community through various events, programs, webinars, and dialogic sessions. We explore the following questions: How do we build community and show up for one another, within and across our disciplines, divisions, departments, and communities? And how does our identity as an academic institution shape, benefit and inspire community for everyone connected to DU, regardless of the role they play?
What is our collective relationship?
How do we access, create and live in community—individually, in small collectives and as a whole? As we share our stories, we learn about the real differences in the ways we experience community. As well, some patterns of our shared values have emerged. Activities include a Community Voices, increased presence of social media highlights, and featuring the work of our amazing community members via the You Rock! Awards program.
How do our systems and structures reflect our values in action?
We create and adopt practices, and hold ourselves accountable to making decisions that reflect our communal commitments. We draw on the employee engagement and COACHE surveys and campus climate work, expand our use of inclusive pedagogy tools and resources through the Inclusive Teaching Practices website, and create community-led workshops and conversations for defining our shared values and how we imagine living them.
The Community Wellness Hours, led by the C+V Team, the Office of the Provost, and the 4D Team, were created to connect and hear from community members on a regular basis. All community members are welcome. Over 1,800 attendees joined our Wellness Hours in the fall quarter, and through different activities we were able to better understand what our community needs to thrive.
Read the Report
DU is committed to living our values of diversity and inclusion. Our community and institutional success is dependent on how well we engage and embrace the rich diversity of our faculty, staff, administrators, students and alumni. With that shared value in mind and in partnership with Human Resources & Inclusive Community (HRIC), the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI), The Cultural Center, Community + Values, and the Staff of Color Association (SOCA), we will celebrate the identities and histories of members of the DU and world communities each month through through features and events.
Learn More about Heritage Months
Read Community + Value’s full letter to the DU community in response to the continued violence against Black people with the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery. The C+V Steering Committee refuses to stand by in silence or passivity and let this systemic violence and crimes against Black people and their lives continue to happen. We reassert, in the strongest terms, our continued stance against institutional racism, violence, bias, hate, and injustice.
Read Now
Over 60 community members and Denver experts joined the second part of the 2022 - 2023 C+V Symposium Series on Blockchain on May 2, 2023. DU faculty and staff members, students, alumni, and industry experts joined the event to discuss the future of Blockchain in different fields.
Led by Valentina Iturbe-LaGrave, PhD, Director for Inclusive Teaching Practices and Co-Lead of the Community+Values initiative, this project aims to solve complex problems, engage multiple perspectives, foster greater belonging, show compassion beyond boundaries and shape the future of our world. This is inclusive teaching at the University of Denver.
