By Rebecca Wyatt, OU Web Writer

The seventh annual Diverse Voices Conference, a forum for those in higher education and the community to speak out about the value of human diversity, will be held at Oakland University Saturday, March 19, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. in 201 Dodge Hall. The conference is free and open to the public.

Student presenters from OU, Walsh College, the University of Detroit Mercy and Davenport University will share their views on the theme of the conference, “Diversity 2005 and Beyond: Challenges and Opportunities.”

The keynote speaker is Brenda Lawrence, mayor of Southfield. Other OU presenters include Karen Markel, assistant professor of management, and Dawn Pickard, associate professor and association dean of education, who also will share their thoughts on the theme and diversity.

“Students rarely get the opportunity to interact with the faculty and community in areas of diversity. This conference gives them that chance,” said Chaunda Scott, assistant professor of education and founder of the Diverse Voices Conference.

While attending a graduate program at Harvard School of Education, Scott noticed students and faculty would gather to discuss their diversity voluntarily.

“I was just so impressed how they got together to discuss culture on their own without being fostered. I wanted to capture that environment,” Scott said.

The event started in 1999 as a conference funded solely by Scott and has grown with more people attending every year and now has corporate supporters like this year’s sponsor, DaimlerChrysler. Scott said she also appreciates the support from OU administrators like Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost Virinder Moudgil.

“Our goal is to develop this conference into an international conference in the next five years,” Scott said.

For more information about the Diverse Voices Conference, contact Scott at (248) 370-4171 or cscott@oakland.edu.