Inclusive Cultural Communications

Online Executive Education: Navigating COVID-19

This free program is part of the “Rethink, Reinvent and Recover: Preparing for the Challenges of an Uncertain Future” series. These three-hour courses are designed by CSU's College of Business to support our community in this time of uncertainty.

Course Overview

Inclusive communication within an organization requires difficult conversations around controversial topics. To address the changing climate, company leaders must know how to properly engage with issues affecting the community. The capacity of an organization to address topics such as race, sexual orientation, gender equity, disabilities, privilege and power will likely showcase its ability to adapt to a new, more diverse workforce.

This session will assist you in understanding that words matter, and that what you say – and often what you don’t – can have a profound effect on the workplace. As companies raise their level of inclusive communication both internally and externally, it's important to learn the fundamentals of engagement while working with diverse people. Exploring the barriers to inclusive workplace communication can help you develop the skills you need to start the conversation around difference and be courageous enough to change the workplace culture.

Course Objectives

1. Learn to be a more authentic communicator across difference
2. Understand what diversity and inclusion are and how they show up in the workplace
3. Learn to think through the discomfort of diversity and inclusion
4. Start the conversation around bias and microaggressions

Giving Back

As a service to our community during this challenging time, the College is offering these courses for free. For participants who are able, the College is requesting donations to Rams Against Hunger, which supports Biz Rams and other CSU students experiencing food insecurity. A donation of $32.50 provides nutritious meals from a CSU dining center to a student for one week; $130 feeds a student for a month. To learn more about the fund and to donate, please visit the Rams Against Hunger page.

Course Details

• Date: Monday, June 29
• Time: 9 AM – 12 PM MST
• Format: Courses are delivered via Mosaic, the College’s enhanced video collaboration platform that enables online learners to attend and participate in live lectures, for the first 75 registrants. Participants who register after the 75 Mosaic seats are full will watch the lectures via a non-interactive livestream link.
• Cost: Free, but a donation to Rams Against Hunger is appreciated
• Not-for-credit executive education

See Mosaic in Action

Instructor

Patrice Palmer
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Specialist and Adjunct Instructor, CSU College of Business

Diversity and Inclusion Specialist, New Belgium Brewing

Patrice M Palmer (they/them/their pronouns) calls both the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Detroit, Mich., home. They hold both a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Marygrove College and they are finishing their doctoral studies at Baylor University, where their work revolves around gender variance, workplace inclusion, leadership and organizational change, social responsibility and curriculum integration and design.

Patrice is a published author and centers equity, diversity, inclusion and justice within their writing and intentionally focuses on the concept of intersectional leadership within their teaching methods. Patrice is a an award-winning diversity, equity and inclusion educator as well as a TEDx speaker and keynote. Patrice combines academic theory with lived experiences to create a new framework for challenging how DEI shows up in the workplace.

At Colorado State University, Patrice is both a DEI Specialist and adjunct instructor, teaching and advising in the Undergraduate Programs Office within the College of Business. Patrice also teaches a Leadership Styles course in the President’s Leadership Program housed within the Student Leadership, Involvement and Community Engagement Office (SLiCE). In 2019, Patrice joined New Belgium Brewing Company as their inaugural D&I Specialist and is working as the only Black, Queer, Transgender D&I subject matter expert in the U.S. craft beer industry. Patrice believes your peace is extremely important and to do that, they love relaxing with their partner of 6 years and their 5-year-old fur baby.

Rethink, Reinvent and Recover

This short-course series is designed to equip professionals to confidently, creatively and compassionately lead their teams through the extraordinary impacts associated with COVID-19 and the ongoing protests for racial justice. The series addresses six major areas of concern professionals are facing now: taking care of themselves and their own fears, positively leading their workforce, acknowledging and dealing with grief and stress, changing their business model for increased sustainability, handling their financial health and creating a more inclusive and equitable workplace.