Student project celebrates campus diversity
Thursday, September 15, 2016 2:00 AM
News
Pittsburg, KS
All you need is love, as the song goes. Kolleen Gladden agrees, but she’d also throw in a Facebook page.
Gladden, vice president of Pittsburg State’s Student Government Association, is turning to social media to promote diversity and togetherness on campus.
This fall, Gladden launched “Love Project,” a venture aimed at creating greater awareness and a celebration of student diversity on campus. Each week, the project’s Facebook page will highlight a different Pitt State student organization.
The goal, Gladden said, is showcase to diversity on campus while also creating an engaging platform on which students can interact.
“We’re fortunate at Pitt State to have such a diverse student population,” Gladden said. “However, I sometimes have felt that different groups don’t always interact with others. There hasn’t been that one online hub where students from various backgrounds can go to interact and learn about others.
“That’s where the idea for the Love Project came from,” she said. “The hope is that by sharing information about various groups in an engaging way, more students will come together and help celebrate and promote diversity on campus.”
The first group to be highlighted by the Love Project was the African Student Association, which represents students from Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Haiti. In connection with the ASA, the Love Project also shared information about the Step Afrika! performance on Sept. 13 at the Bicknell Center.
“Just by sharing information about different groups or different events, I really believe we can bring students together and help us all understand each other a little better,” Gladden said. “Social media is a wonderful platform for this, because it’s a major part of our lives and it’s engaging.”
To help promote the project and campus unity, Gladden is selling red and gold “LOVE” t-shirts. They are $6 each. Proceeds benefit student diversity groups on campus. To order a shirt, email Gladden at sgavp@pittstate.edu.
