Pushing O’Neill’s DEI efforts into the future

Posted on June 7, 2021 by Leslie Wells

headshots of three women — (L-R) Ellise Smith, Rachel Brooks, and Malissa Sanon make up the O’Neill Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Written by Rachel Brooks, Director, O’Neill Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

As the new Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the O’Neill School, I have arrived during a unique time for the school and at a critical point in our nation’s history.

As the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified, we have witnessed an increase in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans driven by racist language and terminology. In 2020, we watched in horror as the events of George Floyd’s murder—and the fallout from it—unfolded in Minneapolis and around the world. Yet in 2021, we also watched as the man responsible for Floyd’s death was convicted—a first step in a long and ongoing journey toward justice.

These events not only affect us all personally, but they also must affect how we interact with each other and how we operate within our school.

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Restoring the past to protect history

Posted on May 24, 2021 by Leslie Wells

Historical sign that gives history of Sugar Creek Community — O’Neill Public Safety Management major Reece Thompson led efforts to restore the Sugar Creek Community cemetery. *Image provided by Indiana Landmarks*

The Sugar Creek Township community in rural Boone County was once a thriving and free community for Black Southerners who had moved north in the early 1850s. Today, all that remains of that community is a small cemetery on the outskirts of Thorntown, Indiana.

While he was still in high school, O’Neill Public Safety Management major Reece Thompson read an article in the Lebanon newspaper about the town’s only Black cemetery. It was on a plot of land originally purchased by the Quaker community and given to the town’s Black residents to use as a burial site. At the time, Black people were not allowed to be buried within town limits.

Through the article, Thompson learned the cemetery had fallen into disrepair.

“It’s the only African American history left in Thorntown and is believed to be one of the less than 10 African American cemeteries remaining in Indiana,” he explains. “I think that’s a pretty important thing. That community helped build the town. People often don’t recognize their own town’s history, but the early Black pioneers and this cemetery are a giant piece of Thorntown’s past.”

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Transfer to O’Neill opens doors to law and government

Posted on May 17, 2021 by Leslie Wells

man sits in front of lake with IU hat on and blue button-up shirt — O’Neill Civic Leadership major Addison Lavelle

Addison Lavelle was already enrolled in college classes in his hometown of Anderson, Indiana. He had earned a scholarship at Anderson University and was following in the footsteps of many of his family and friends who also attended the school.

But he wanted to be closer to where decisions were being made and to the people who were making those important decisions.

His father was an IU alum so the urban campus of IUPUI felt like a natural direction for Lavelle. It was his chance to be steps away from the Indiana Statehouse and countless law firms that were ripe with opportunities for engagement and impact.

“I could get an IU degree in the heart of Indianapolis—what’s better than that?” Lavelle says smiling. “It’s not too far from home. It’s urban. It’s where government is. It’s where people are involved and things are happening. I just knew it was the perfect place.”

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Students overcome adversity of 2020–21 academic year

Posted on May 10, 2021 by Leslie Wells

IUPUI students sitting in classroom at desks wearing masks — For in-person classes in the 2020-21 academic year, students wore masks and sat socially distanced from others.
Photographer: Liz Kaye

“A year unlike any other.” “Unprecedented times.” “A new normal.”

Those terms ran on repeat throughout the past academic year. The challenges they encompassed were very real, forcing everyone to stretch outside their comfort zones and adjust even further to the unexpected.

Yet O’Neill students, staff, and faculty worked through those barriers to come out better on the other side, inspiring each other as they moved through the year.

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O’Neill’s Mari Luna honored for work to amplify immigrant voices

Posted on May 6, 2021 by Leslie Wells

woman with dark hair and glasses, wearing black blazer

Mari Luna is actively working to help immigrants in the United States. She currently serves as a community organizer for Movimiento Cosecha, a movement that fights for the rights of all immigrants.

“Movimiento Cosecha has really allowed me to work directly with the people most impacted and center their voices when working with them to make a difference,” she explains.

The position is a perfect fit for Mari. She’s pursuing her degree in Civic Leadership at O’Neill while earning a Liberal Arts certificate in Social Justice Organizing. O’Neill is where she’s been able to learn the tools to pursue her passion for civic engagement.

She’s taken those classroom lessons and put them to use in real-life applications, advocating for bills that would provide tuition benefits to undocumented students and driver’s licenses to all Indiana residents. She also volunteers in programs addressing food insecurity, higher education, and basic needs access for historically excluded communities in Indianapolis.

“O’Neill has allowed me to see different perspectives and helped me realize there is a lot of theory within the curriculum that can change once you are doing the work out in the community,” she says.

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