-ISM (N.) Multimedia Campus Diversity Summit, Fall '96
Program Report--Executive Summary

-ISM (N.) Multimedia Campus Diversity Summit: Four weeks of addressing and promoting issues of diversity on college campuses nation-wide. Vehicles of discussion included the -ISM (N.) national listserv, interactive world wide web site, local campus forums (such as interfaith services, interactive bulletin boards, and diversity mixers), and the culmination of the Summit: a live satellite videoconference held on November 13, 1996.

Summit Theme: "The Way Things Are" and "The Way Things Can Be" in relation to diversity on college campuses today, was the theme that framed the Summit around reflection and action on campus diversity issues.

2,000 Students Prepare for Videoconference: From the -ISM (N.) national listserv and interactive website, to local campus forums and community educational activities, an estimated 2,000 students participated in various activities gearing up for the national videoconference.

8,000 Students from 86 Schools--The Live Videoconference: On November 13, 1996, 8,000 students from 86 colleges and universities nationwide participated in the live videoconference, transmitted from the University of North Carolina Center for Public Television in Research Triangle Park, NC.

National Award: The Summit Videoconference was selected by the Alliance for Community Media as a finalist in the 1997 Hometown Video Festival in the Professional/LIVE category (a finalist means it was the top three in this category out of 1,427 entries nationwide).

7 Million Additional Viewers: In Fall 1997, Free Speech TV will feature the Summit video as the keynote broadcast of a two-week television series distributed to their 70 cable affiliates across the country. This broadcast will reach over 7 million homes.

Nationally Acclaimed Panelists: CNN political analyst Farai Chideya facilitated the discussion that featured a dynamic panel of national diversity experts including: Dr. Ronald Takaki, author of A Different Mirro: A History of Multicultural America and professor at UC Berkeley; Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, professor at the University of North Carolina and author of Race Rules: Navigating the Color Line; student José Palafox from UC Berkeley; and graduate student of American University, Mindy Michels.

Format and Issues That Arose: The videoconference was organized into two live satellite transmissions sandwiched by a 70 minute break for local discussion. During the 2.5 hour event discussion ranged from concerns about separatism and racism to sexual orientation and dealing with apathy. Questions came from e-mail, phone, the -ISM (N.) listserv, and the studio audience.

400 Video Letters: We asked students nation-wide to videotape their own brief personal commentaries on diversity. To our surprise we received over 400 video clips from 20 schools--not only from students, but from faculty, staff, and administrators. The best were featured in the videoconference and became highlights of the Summit.

1 Million Reached Through Media Coverage: Press coverage of the Summit appeared in over 40 publications, reaching a total circulation of over 1 million people nationwide.

Resource Materials: Registered schools receive extensive resource materials, including a videoconference Planning Guide, a Diversity Primer with suggestions for diversity related educational activities, Time Warner Inc.'s photography exhibiti on American diversity It's US: A Celebration of Who We Are in America Today, recruitment materials including full-color posters, flyers, a radio public service announcement, and agendas for each of the 8,000 participants.

Sponsors: The generosity of our major supporters, Project Change: An Anti-Racism Initiative of the Levi Strauss Foundation, Time Warner, Inc., University of North Carolina Center for Public Television, and additional supporters Ford Foundation, Surdna Foundation, and Reebok Foundation made the Summit possible and widely accessible. Sponsors received a variety of recognition on promotional materials and on air during the videoconference transmission.

Measured Impact and Videoconference Analysis: Over 40% of student participants were people of color. 80% of student respondents had an overall positive impression of the videoconference, with men of color giving the most favorable responses. 39% of the participants "rarely or never" came to events discussing diversity--proving that the videoconference went beyond simply "preaching to the choir."

 
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