Statement of Purpose

The Office of Inclusive Excellence fosters efforts to define, cultivate and support an inclusive educational community and workplace environment aligned with the St. Mary’s mission and its Catholic and Marianist identity. The office is committed to promoting community building and partnering to serve the common good. The work is guided by the St. Mary’s mission, the Characteristics of Marianist Universities and Catholic Social Teaching focused on the shared tenets of understanding, appreciation and respect for human dignity and cultural differences.

Inclusive Excellence Initiatives

  • Happy Holidays

    Recommended resources for various religious and faith based holidays.

    Religious and Faith Holiday Resources

    • Lalli, S. 2021. A Holly Jolly Diwali.

    • Mehta, S. 2018. Beyond Chrismukkah — The Christian-Jewish Interfaith Family in the United States.

    • Whitaker, M. 2023. Black Studies and the First Kwanzaa.

    • De Groot, K. 2023. Comics, Culture, and Religion: Faith Imagined.

    • Jones, K. 2015. Holiday Symbols and Customs, 5th Ed.

    • Abbey, C. 2009. Lohri (Holidays, Festivals, and Celebrations of the World Dictionary).

    • Melton, J. 2011. Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations.

    • Black, K. 2017. Rhythms of Religious Ritual: The Yearly Cycles of Jews, Christians, and Muslims.

    • DePaola, T. 1999. The Night of Las Posadas by Tomie.

    • Scott, A. 2017. ‘Tis The Season of Many Holidays; From St. Nicholas Day to Zartosht No-Diso, Numerous Celebrations Held in December.

    • Axelrod, C. 2013. Your Guide to the Jewish Holidays: From Shofar to Seder.

    Books

    • Randhawa, R. 2006. American Ramadan — This documentary is a bold and exciting new look at the American Muslim experience. It explores and reveals the holiest of rituals, shared by the Abrahamic traditions practiced by the act of Fasting for Faith.

    • Ashby, H. 1979. Being There — An ideal Bodhi Day movie. After the death of his employer forces him out of the only home he’s ever known, a simpleminded, sheltered gardener becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful tycoon and an insider in Washington politics.

    • Guss, A. 1997. Christmas Unwrapped: The History of Christmas — A History Channel documentary. The documentary traces the evolution of the celebration of Christmas from ancient times until the present day.

    • Mishra, A. 2019. Gamak Ghar — This film takes audiences back to those bittersweet days of childhood, when Diwali meant keeping the firecrackers to dry on the terrace before the special day, wearing new clothes, and lighting diyas on the verandah.

    • Anton, D. 2023. Hanukkah — A Festival of Delights: The evolution of Hanukkah, including its history and how it is celebrated across America as seen in a series of interviews and historical footage.

    • Hawk, M. 2011. Las Posadas — Christmas in Mexico: Ester, a Mexican high school student, provides you with a look into her culture and its observation of the holiday as she shares the experience with Jason, an American high school student.

    • Pinkney, A. Seven Candles for Kwanzaa — Narrated by Alfre Woodard, Seven Candles for Kwanzaa is an iconographic adaptation of the 1993 picture book written by Andrea Davis Pinkney and beautifully illustrated by Brian Pinkney. Using minimal enhancement and less narrative structure, the program is a nevertheless impressive factual introduction to Kwanzaa, focusing on the vocabulary native to this American holiday as embodied in the various rituals, feasts, and festivities.

    • Asante, M. 2008. The Black Candle — A documentary about the struggle and triumph of African-American family, community, and culture, using Kwanzaa as a vehicle to celebrate the African-American experience. The seven principles of Kwanzaa (unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith) are so important to African Americans today.

    • Grubin, D.2010. The Buddha — After 400 BC, a new philosophy was born in South east Asia, generated from the ideas of Buddha, a mysterious Prince from Nepal who gained enlightenment while he sat under a large, shapely fig tree.

    • Tasneem Institute. 2022. The Story of Ashura — A new documentary which examines how the epic story of Ashura was preserved and passed down to us over a thousand years later.

    Movies

    • Grupo ALJ. 2023 December 25. Con Sabor a Navidad.

    • Fr. Mike Schmitz. 2017 December 27. Christmas: A Time for Hope.

    • Discerning Hearts. 2005 December. Prayerful Meditation on The Twelve Days of Christmas.

    • Wendy Shinyo Haylett. 2019 – 2024 April. Everyday Buddhism.

    • Dan Pashman. 2023 November 28. Hanukkah Latkes.

    • Eboo Patel. 2023 October 19. Interfaith America.

    • Rachel Lynn and Rev. Dave Lyman. 2022 March 27. Interfaith Connection.

    • Oni Lasana. 2020 December 26. Kwanzaa Time.

    • AudioStories. 2021 November 22. Nativity: The Audio Dramatization of the Birth of Jesus.

    • Qalam Institute. 2011 November 30. Qalam Institute Podcast.

    • Beth Kempton. 2020 November 19. The Calm Christmas Podcast.

    • Rabbi Yakov Barber. 2022 December 16. The Story of Chanukah.

    Podcasts

Land Acknowledgement

We acknowledge the San Antonio River as Yanaguana, (Spirit Waters in Pajalate) as the source of life for this city and commit to protecting her, all her tributaries and connected waters and this land called Texas as Somi Sek to the Esto’k Gna people who are called Carrizo-Comecrudo by the Spanish, today and for future generations.

We acknowledge this place known as San Antonio as the traditional homeland of many Native American peoples who are called Coahuiltecan by Spanish records. 200 tribes/bands/clans were documented in historical records and include the Payaya, Auteca Paguame, Jarame, Pompopa and Borrado, as well as other aboriginal peoples such as the Carrizo-Comecrudo who continue to carry their traditional lifeways.

We acknowledge these Indigenous various communities as the traditional people of this land now called San Antonio, Texas.

We acknowledge this homeland that would later include Comanches and Lipan Apaches in the 1700s, as a place that is now home to nearly 30,000 Urban Indians spanning from tribes across the North, Central and South America who continue to sustain their traditional languages and customs.

Land acknowledgments honor historical links between Indigenous Peoples/First Nations and the territories. This traditional custom dates back centuries for many Native communities and nations. For the last several years, many institutions of higher education and organizations commonly begin meetings and events with formal statements of land acknowledgments.

In these public statements, institutions acknowledge history and express a commitment to current reality and future relationships between the institution, Indigenous Peoples/Nations and the land. For non-indigenous communities, this signifies respect and recognition and honors the traditional caretakers of the land on which we work, live and play. Knowing the unceded land we live on is important because Indigenous history is American history. By learning about the cultures and history of our original inhabitants, we honor their history and counter the narratives of discovery and colonization.

Land acknowledgments alone are but a small gesture and are made more meaningful by authentic and informed actions of support and solidarity with our Native Urban Communities. This is a first step in creating an ongoing intentional practice of amplifying Indigenous voices and moving toward truth and reconciliation. St. Mary’s University is inspired to action by learning a more truthful existence of our Native Urban community through our alliance with the American Indians of Texas of the Spanish Colonial Missions.

About Land Acknowledgements

  • Helping Individuals Enhance Intercultural Competence

    The world we live in is comprised of people from many cultures. Any given day we may interact with individuals from our own culture and/or different cultures. We rely on our personal knowledge, skills and attitudes to think, act and communicate effectively with people from different cultural backgrounds. Intercultural Competence is one’s ability to make sense of and respond to cultural differences.

    At St. Mary’s, we recognize the importance of intercultural competence as a key to inclusive excellence. To help each individual on their personal journey, we offer the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) assessment tool and developmental plan to students, faculty and staff.  IDI aligns closely with our mission to create leaders for the common good.

    IDI assesses intercultural competence — the capability to shift cultural perspective and appropriately adapt behavior to cultural differences and commonalities. After taking the assessment, IDI generates profiles on an individual’s intercultural competence paired with an Individual Development Plan (IDP) — a detailed blueprint for the individual to further develop their cultural competence.

    For more information, email inclusion@stmarytx.edu.

  • Employee Affinity Groups

    St. Mary’s University values diversity and recognizes the importance of all individuals feeling connected to our community, regardless of their personal identities. As we continue to foster an inclusive campus work environment, the Office of Inclusive Excellence is pleased to sponsor affinity groups for employees and has established guidelines for employees seeking to form an Employee Affinity Group (EAG).

    These voluntary, identity-based groups may be formed around demographic characteristics (such as, but not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, or ability) as a way to bring together employees with a shared purpose. In addition to networking with individuals from similar and often marginalized communities, EAGs empower members to contribute to the education of our campus community, give back to the local community and be an active voice for change.

    Learn more on Gateway

  • Hear the Name, Say it Right with NameCoach

    At St. Mary’s, we value each individual and believe correct name pronunciation is a sign of respect. To continue fostering inclusion, in the classroom and beyond, we are providing faculty, staff and students access to the NameCoach platform which will allow each person to record the correct pronunciation of their name. 

    This animated short highlights the importance of names.

    Ideas for using NameCoach

    • Before a meeting, listen to name recordings if you are unsure of pronunciations
    • Ask students you work with to record their name and to use the recordings to learn their peers’ names
    • Share the Nivedhan video and have a discussion
    • Talk within your work team to discuss ways you might use Name Coach
    • Share the story of your name as an icebreaker and way to get to know each other 
    • Remind students of the NameCoach recordings as a resource before and during group work
    Get started

  • Language Resource Directory

    The purpose of the Language Resource Directory is to provide contact information for faculty and staff who need assistance communicating with campus visitors during regular business hours. We requested assistance from faculty and staff who speak multiple languages and are willing to be listed in an online directory,  and as a result, we have contacts for 11 languages: Arabic, French, German, Hindi, Kannada, Korean, Persian (Farsi), Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Tamil.

    Access the directory

    The directory is available for students, faculty and staff of the University.

  • Resources

    Students, faculty and staff can find comprehensive lists of organizations for diverse populations and resources to learn about systemic injustices and other cultures.

    Explore resources

    The resources are available for students, faculty and staff of the University.

  • Advisory Board

    Cody B. Cox, Ph.D.
    Associate Professor of Industrial/Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior
    Greehey School of Business
    ccox9@stmarytx.edu

    Léo Benavides
    Counselor
    Office of Student Financial Assistance
    rbenavides1@stmarytx.edu

    Mike Martinez Jr., J.D., M.S.I.S.
    Director Sarita Kenedy East Law Library and Professor
    St. Mary’s University School of Law
    mmartinez17@stmarytx.edu

    Verónica Contreras-Shannon, Ph.D.
    Professor and Program Director – URISE
    Department of Biological Sciences
    vcontrerasshann2@stmarytx.edu

    Wendy D. Martinez
    Assistant Dean
    Office of Residence Life
    wmartinez@stmarytx.edu

    Jenee Margo Gonzales, J.D.
    Chief Development and Communications Officer
    Community In Schools of San Antonio
    jgonzales@cissa.org

    Janet Guadarrama
    Executive Director of Human Resources, Title IX Coordinator
    Office of Human Resources
    jguadarrama2@stmarytx.edu

    Paul X. Uhlig, Ph.D.
    Professor and Chair of Mathematics, Marianist Educational Associate
    puhlig@stmarytx.edu

    Andre Hampton, J.D.
    Professor of Law
    St. Mary’s University School of Law
    ahampton@stmarytx.edu

    Marlon Furlongue
    Associate Athletics Director, Compliance and Internal Operations
    Athletics
    mfurlongue@stmarytx.edu

  • Contact Us

    Office of Inclusive Excellence
    St. Louis Hall Suite 105
    210-436-3616
    inclusion@stmarytx.edu

    Stella Silva, Ph.D.
    Associate Vice President

    Julieta Sanchez
    Program Coordinator

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