Official SLCC Blog

Marchers with Salt Lake Community College joined an estimated 70,000 people June 5 in Salt Lake City for the first Pride Parade held in three years due to the pandemic. Among the SLCC participants, one SLCC Brutus, the Bruin mascot, and about 50 students, faculty, staff and their friends and family danced, waved flags and beat drums as they looped through the streets of downtown Salt Lake City. Marchers representing a entire family lead the SLCC group with a banner from the SLCC Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center that read “You Belong Here.” As SLCC marchers passed the announcer's stand, the crowd cheered wildly when it was broadcast that SLCC is the most diverse publicly-supported institution of higher education in Utah.  The history of the Pride Parade dates back to summer 1970 and an anniversary march held to commemorate protests from the previous year that broke out because of a violent police raid at a gay bar in New York City. What became known as the Stonewall rio...

There is a lot to celebrate at SLCC, and campuses are full of parties and recognitions before commencement. The Office of Multicultural Affairs and TRIO paired up on May 5 to recognize students of diversity and those who are the first in their families to graduate from college. Virgil Johnson. The Excellence in Diversity Event started with a smudging ceremony by Virgil Johnson of the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute. Johnson explained to those gathered that the smoke in the smudging ceremony cleanses the body, mind, and spirit. He said it’s a way to let out the bad and let in the good. In his native language, he cleansed the graduating students in attendance. Throughout the ritual, Johnson took the time to expound on the meaning of what he was doing and invited those gathered to participate with specific symbolic gestures. ...

Faculty Development Director Liz Rogers is excited to hold SLCC’s first Symposium on Equity and Inclusion on April 1. The symposium, which was put on hold when the pandemic struck, provides a space for students, faculty, staff and administrators to share their experiences related to justice, equity, diversity and inclusion, or JEDI. Liz says the format is designed to help participants make new or stronger connections and share ideas surrounding JEDI work. She says storytelling is a good way to focus on transformation. “Stories acknowledge the struggle it takes to do this work while still being able to celebrate good outcomes,” she says. Liz says there is always more we can be doing and hopes participants come away inspired to take action towards creating a more welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone at SLCC. The symposium, titled “Stories of Transformation,” is a hybrid event; participants can attend the all-day event in person or online. Registration is required f...

Are you Hispanic or Latina/o/x/e? Have you ever wondered why you see that question on applications, including our admissions application? Here's why:  Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) is an emerging Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), which means that we are nearing the 25% full-time undergraduate enrollment threshold of students who identified as "Hispanic" in their admissions application. As we work towards becoming an HSI, we are revamping approaches to student services inside and outside the classroom to support this growing community in Salt Lake.    Every day at the college, on the news, and on social media, we encounter the terms "Hispanic," "Latino," "Latina," and most recently, the terms "Latinx" and "Latine." However, what is the difference between the terms? Here is an introduction:   Hispanic  is a term that the U.S. Census introduced in the 1980s to capture a demographic with similar cultural characteri...

The death of George Floyd last summer brought feelings of fear, hurt, betrayal and frustration to the members our SLCC family. These emotions have been reinforced by the senseless deaths of far too many in our society.   While we are grateful justice has prevailed in this case, there is still much work to be done. We recognize SLCC plays an important role in transforming society by fighting racism, inequity and indifference. As Utah’s most diverse college, we believe in providing a safe environment that enables every student to reach their full potential, and we will continue to do all we can to foster a culture of anti-racism, mutual respect and trust.   The college is in a unique position to prepare students to change their communities for the better. Since last summer, SLCC, in partnership with our many diverse student groups, created a number of  programs designed to address society’s problems both individually and collectively . We encourage everyone at the college t...

Join SLCC in celebrating and honoring the role of womxn in history and today. Here is a list of the events and workshops happening throughout the month. In addition,  “Her Story Is Power” will be on display in the Taylorsville Redwood Campus Student Center Gallery for the whole month.  Monday, March 2 12–1 pm Taylorsville Redwood Campus STC Oak Room Unsung Sheroes Awards Lunch Tuesday, March 3 2–4 pm Taylorsville Redwood Campus STC 025 (Den 2) LGBTQ+ Awareness Training Part 1 Monday, March 9 1–2 pm Taylorsville Redwood Campus STC Oak Room International Womxn’s Day Celebration Tea Tuesday, March 10 12–1 pm Taylorsville Redwood Campus SI STEM Dumke Center 1010 A/B STEMinist Panel Wednesday, March 11 1–2 pm Taylorsville Redwood Campus STC Oak Room Femme-tastic Female Faculty Presentations Thursday, March 12 11 am–12 pm Taylorsville Redwood Campus STC Oak Room “ ‘Where are the men?’ Cultivating Allyship for Womxn” workshop Monday, March ...

SLCC has the most diverse student body of any higher education institution in Utah. As such, the makeup of our faculty and staff should reflect that of our student population. Students are more likely to thrive when they recognize themselves in their instructors and the college staff who provide additional support. What’s more, all of our students benefit from the opportunity to learn from instructors with different backgrounds and cultures.  One strategy that aligns with our goal to achieve equity in student participation and completion is the new SLCC Search Advocate program. It is an important way in which we are working to encourage diversity in our hiring practices. Search Advocates are SLCC staff and faculty who have elected to undergo additional training so they can serve hiring committees throughout the college in improving equity, diversity and inclusivity. Specifically, Search Advocates assist hiring managers by developing job descriptions and interview questions...

Student Daniel Michael Johnson delivers a speech at graduation celebration. Salt Lake Community College's Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs  recently held its annual Multicultural Graduates Celebration. Virgil Johnson, chairman of the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation, led off the event with a prayer and blessing. Taylorsville High School's JROTC presented the colors before Katie Cook sang the National Anthem. The SLCC Pacific Unity Association also performed dances for the audience inside Bruin Arena. Below are a few highlights of the event. Student Shahla Elnunu speaks at the event. Students who are veterans were also recognized during the event.

As different demographic information flashes on a screen in front of a roomful of educators from around Utah, demographer Pam Perlich pauses at one troubling data point in particular – locations of the largest concentration of men of color throughout the state. Jails and prisons. “We have work to do,” she tells the audience. Perlich, director of Demographic Research for the University of Utah, sets the tone in the opening hour of the recent Men of Color Summit 2018 at Salt Lake Community College’s South City Campus. The event’s theme is “The Urgency Is Now!” The exigency centers on the inequity in higher education of the retention and graduation rates for men of color and the factors that contribute to those relatively low rates. Each slide shown during the summit’s opening presentation paints a picture about men of color in Utah. Fewer bachelor degrees. Lower median household income. Higher unemployment rate. More males living in poverty. A lower proficiency in reading an...