"Solidarity is not the same as support. To experience solidarity, we must have a community of interests, shared beliefs and goals around which to unite, to build [networks]. Support can be occasional. It can be given and just as easily withdrawn. Solidarity requires sustained, ongoing commitment." - bell hooks
CONFERENCE ORGANIZER AND COORDINATOR, Keara Sternberg '18
Keara is a senior sociology major at Skidmore College. She is also triple-minoring in Intergroup Relations, International Affairs and Honors Forum. Her commitment to racial and social justice work was most influenced by her four years at Skidmore, especially by the previous GTFO: Get to Freedom ORGANIZE! Conference that she attended during her first year in college. Her vision for this upcoming conference stems from the networks and connections she has been afforded at Skidmore College and throughout her semester abroad in Samoa. During her college career, Keara has served as a Peer Mentor for the First-Year Experience, Co-coordinator of the Social Justice Month Committee, President of Newman Club, Research Assistant for the Intergroup Relations Department, ESL Conversation Facilitator, Peer Academic Coach, Co-coordinator of the Womxn of Color Network and member of the People of Color Union. Next fall, Keara will be pursuing a Masters degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs or the Sociology of Education. She hopes this conference will provide valuable glimpses into the possibilities of student affairs work. Within the realm of higher education, she wants to implement programming that affirms the presence and contributions of marginalized students—not as secondary to normative identities but as exceptional, in and of themselves.
CONFERENCE ADVISOR AND CONSULTANT, Candace Hairston (Associate Director of OSDP)
Candace Hairston earned a B.A. in Communication from the State University of New York at Geneseo and an M.Ed. from Loyola University Chicago. Candace became passionate about higher education and social justice while attending SUNY Geneseo. Candace is dedicated to building an inclusive and equitable Skidmore College. Prior to her appointment at Skidmore College, Candace interned at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom for 6 months. In her free time, Candace loves to chat about all things Beyoncé, curl up with a good book and travel.
EMAILS AND OUTREACH COORDINATOR, DyAnna Washington '18
DyAnna is a senior sociology major at Skidmore College. From the moment she was born, her family, specifically her mother, instilled in her the values of standing strong in her Blackness and always affirming and strengthening her community; these values define DyAnna's work and her unwavering love for communities of color across the globe. An academic at heart, DyAnna could always be found reading a book or writing when she was a child. It was not until her first year at Skidmore, though, that she was introduced to Sociology through a broad "Social Issues" course. Immediately, DyAnna knew that she had found her place in academia and quickly broadened her knowledge by becoming a research assistant for faculty members within the department, studying various topics such as race, racism, sexuality, and gender. When DyAnna facilitated a peer-led dialogue to complete her Intergroup Relations minor, she realized that she also had a passion for Higher Education. As a blooming scholar-practitioner, DyAnna is intrigued by the intersection of race, gender, and education as it relates to students of color at predominantly white institutions. After Skidmore, DyAnna will be pursuing a Master's in Higher Education and a Doctorate in Education so she can empower students, faculty, and administrators to be agents of change by fostering liberating, equitable, and inclusive social justice-based spaces within institutions of higher learning and beyond.
FOOD AND BUDGET OFFICER, Tracey Wingate '18
Tracey is an environmental studies major and IGR minor at Skidmore. Her ultimate goal is to work towards making the food system more just and sustainable. She is helping to source the food for this conference because she wants the attendees to have delicious, and nutritious, meals that give them the energy to engage in the work of “Envisioning LiberaT.I.O.N.” for themselves and others.
TALENT SHOWCASE MANAGER, Hillary Ramirez '18
Hillary Ramirez is a first-generation college student majoring in Chemistry and minoring in Latin American Studies. Hillary plans on pursuing a career in medicine and public health. She plans on serving communities with disparate access to healthcare, specifically communities of color. She became interested in public health after working at emergency rooms and clinics across the city and realizing that patients with a lack of access to primary care were mostly patients of color.
SELF-CARE WORKSHOP MANAGERS, Alyssa Morales '18 and Taylor Fohrhaltz-Burbank '18
Alyssa Morales is a senior at Skidmore College. She is majoring in Political Science and minoring in Mathematics. It comes with no surprise that she wanted to be a part of this conference because of her passion to work on equity for Students of Color at PWIs like Skidmore. She is one of the Co-Coordinators of the Womxn of Color Network at Skidmore. She is a Team Member of the Office of Student Diversity Programs. She is one of the two student representatives of the Bias Response Group. She was president of Raíces, the Latinx club at Skidmore College. She was a part of the Student Government Association as class senator. After Skidmore, Alyssa will go to law school and become a criminal and immigration public defender. She will also work in a non-profit organization that works to help poor people of color recover after being incarcerated.
Taylor Fohrhaltz-Burbank is currently a senior at Skidmore College pursuing a major in Music and a minor in Environmental Studies. Taylor has devoted the majority of her time during her Skidmore career to both the cello and orchestral conducting. While not in the practice room, Taylor has also become heavily involved in the fields of musicology/ethnomusicology where she has been most able to find the intersection between conversations of social identity/social justice and music. Taylor had the privilege of starting off her Skidmore career with the Scribner Seminar entitled Music, Race, and Class, which was taught by ethnomusicologist Professor Ouyang Bryant. This class not only introduced Taylor to conversations surrounding social identity, but helped inspire students within the class to continue these conversations throughout the rest of their Skidmore College careers. It is Taylor’s hope that through this conference she can highlight the powerful work POC musicians have been doing surrounding topics of liberation and music as self-care.
FACILITIES AND MATERIALS OFFICER, Jane Moretta-Miller '18
Jane Moretta-Miller is a senior, Political Science and Social Work double major. A San Francisco native, she grew up in the rapidly gentrified Mission District, which has inspired her pursuit of Social Justice through institutional change. Observing as those with unlimited funds through employment in tech industries replaced and evicted those denied any possibility to attain a similar social capital left her searching for long term solutions. Developing a political sense of self as the murder of black and brown bodies by police was publicized, the school to prison pipeline further exposed, and the similarities between prison and Jim Crow where expanded upon, Jane came to note the role of public policy in shaping reality. This quickly became her passion, and with the help of encouraging professors and peers at Skidmore College, she was able to manifest that passion into a lifestyle of community participation, career pathways, and academic growth. She is currently working at the New York State Assembly as an intern for Andrew Hevesi, the Assembly Member for the 28th district of New York (Queens), and the chair of the Committee on Social Services. This has allowed Jane to experience and observe first-hand the process of social change with the goal of Social Justice through legislation. She also works as a research assistant for the Social Work department, which has allowed her to deepen her understanding of marginalized and typically oppressed populations. Jane is also an RA, and serves on the Senior Gift Committee, allowing her to facilitate a feeling of community on Skidmore’s campus.
PRINTING AND PUBLICATIONS OFFICER, Morgan Dagnicourt '18
Morgan is a social work major with a minor in intergroup relations (IGR) and plans to pursue the ongoing discussion of the country's welfare in postgraduate work. He currently does advocacy and legislative work at Planned Parenthood in the Capital District.
CONFERENCE VIDEOGRAPHER, Emily Rizzo '18
Emily Rizzo is a senior at Skidmore College. She is an English major with a double minor in Intergroup Relations (IGR) and Media and Film Studies. Her passion for social justice drives most of her audio and film work, including an audio documentary about Cape Town comedians who use laughter as liberation and to bridge the deep racial divides in post-apartheid South Africa. Emily is currently co-facilitating an IGR dialogue between people of color and white people and working on her senior project documentary film about reproductive justice and stand-up comedy. As a white identifying individual, it is an honor to be making the ELC’s promotional video this year. Emily believes it is important, and necessary, to constantly reflect on and question her position and privilege and to support the initiatives of her peers of color in all different kinds of ways.
CONFERENCE PHOTOGRAPHER, Jesus Pancho Cuahutle '20
Jesus is a sophomore pursuing an academic career at Skidmore College. He is involved in photography, chess, and international union clubs. While off campus, Jesus enjoys photography, landscapes and portraits of Mexican descent. "I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice no matter who it's for, or against" - Malcolm X.
CONFERENCE RUNNERS, Kali Villarosa '18, Ashley Polanco '18 and Olivia Golden '18
Kali Villarosa is a Skidmore College senior majoring in international affairs with minors in political science and intergroup relations (IGR). She is very involved in campus life as the president of the student clubs Speakers Bureau, Model EU and Benef-Action, as well as participating as an IGR research assistant, and in student activism. As a woman of color from Brooklyn, NY, she works to elevate the voices and experiences of people of color through dialogue, research, and journalism. She plans to continue to grad school post-undergrad for a masters in urban policy and planning, with a focus in housing rights.
Ashley Polanco is a senior majoring in Sociology and minoring in Intergroup Relations. She was born and raised in Harlem, NY, and she identifies as Dominican-American, afro-latina and Caribbean. She is a student assistant at the Office of Student Diversity Programs and a former research assistant for Intergroup Relations. She is a trained facilitator in topics of social justice, and she is currently co-facilitating the first intragroup people of color dialogue here at Skidmore. She constantly thinks about power, agency, and positionality in relation to identity. She believes one cannot critically examine their identity without thinking about the simultaneous relationship between the past and present. She enjoys conversations about identity and self-definition. In her free time, she writes short poems and hangs out with friends.
Olivia Golden grew up in Niskayuna, New York - just over 30 minutes from Skidmore College. She is an Environmental Studies major with a minor in Studio Art. When she is not in class, Olivia enjoys shoveling compost for the Skidmore College Sustainability Office, organizing campus events with the Student Government Association, and playing for the Skidmore Quidditch team. For the past two summers, Olivia helped to oversee Roots and Wisdom, which is an urban agriculture and job-training program for high school students. One of the goals of the program is to increase access to local food in low-income communities. Olivia’s work with Roots and Wisdom fostered her passion for social justice. After graduation, she would like to pursue a career in environmental planning and develop spaces where people of all different backgrounds can come together. During her time at Skidmore, Olivia had the opportunity to partake in an intergroup relations dialogue. This helped her to understand the importance of dialogue in giving people with marginalized identities safe spaces to share their experiences. Olivia is excited to be a part of the Envisioning LiberaT.I.O.N. Conference. She hopes to become a better ally to people of color and help generate a more inclusive campus community.
Keara is a senior sociology major at Skidmore College. She is also triple-minoring in Intergroup Relations, International Affairs and Honors Forum. Her commitment to racial and social justice work was most influenced by her four years at Skidmore, especially by the previous GTFO: Get to Freedom ORGANIZE! Conference that she attended during her first year in college. Her vision for this upcoming conference stems from the networks and connections she has been afforded at Skidmore College and throughout her semester abroad in Samoa. During her college career, Keara has served as a Peer Mentor for the First-Year Experience, Co-coordinator of the Social Justice Month Committee, President of Newman Club, Research Assistant for the Intergroup Relations Department, ESL Conversation Facilitator, Peer Academic Coach, Co-coordinator of the Womxn of Color Network and member of the People of Color Union. Next fall, Keara will be pursuing a Masters degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs or the Sociology of Education. She hopes this conference will provide valuable glimpses into the possibilities of student affairs work. Within the realm of higher education, she wants to implement programming that affirms the presence and contributions of marginalized students—not as secondary to normative identities but as exceptional, in and of themselves.
CONFERENCE ADVISOR AND CONSULTANT, Candace Hairston (Associate Director of OSDP)
Candace Hairston earned a B.A. in Communication from the State University of New York at Geneseo and an M.Ed. from Loyola University Chicago. Candace became passionate about higher education and social justice while attending SUNY Geneseo. Candace is dedicated to building an inclusive and equitable Skidmore College. Prior to her appointment at Skidmore College, Candace interned at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom for 6 months. In her free time, Candace loves to chat about all things Beyoncé, curl up with a good book and travel.
EMAILS AND OUTREACH COORDINATOR, DyAnna Washington '18
DyAnna is a senior sociology major at Skidmore College. From the moment she was born, her family, specifically her mother, instilled in her the values of standing strong in her Blackness and always affirming and strengthening her community; these values define DyAnna's work and her unwavering love for communities of color across the globe. An academic at heart, DyAnna could always be found reading a book or writing when she was a child. It was not until her first year at Skidmore, though, that she was introduced to Sociology through a broad "Social Issues" course. Immediately, DyAnna knew that she had found her place in academia and quickly broadened her knowledge by becoming a research assistant for faculty members within the department, studying various topics such as race, racism, sexuality, and gender. When DyAnna facilitated a peer-led dialogue to complete her Intergroup Relations minor, she realized that she also had a passion for Higher Education. As a blooming scholar-practitioner, DyAnna is intrigued by the intersection of race, gender, and education as it relates to students of color at predominantly white institutions. After Skidmore, DyAnna will be pursuing a Master's in Higher Education and a Doctorate in Education so she can empower students, faculty, and administrators to be agents of change by fostering liberating, equitable, and inclusive social justice-based spaces within institutions of higher learning and beyond.
FOOD AND BUDGET OFFICER, Tracey Wingate '18
Tracey is an environmental studies major and IGR minor at Skidmore. Her ultimate goal is to work towards making the food system more just and sustainable. She is helping to source the food for this conference because she wants the attendees to have delicious, and nutritious, meals that give them the energy to engage in the work of “Envisioning LiberaT.I.O.N.” for themselves and others.
TALENT SHOWCASE MANAGER, Hillary Ramirez '18
Hillary Ramirez is a first-generation college student majoring in Chemistry and minoring in Latin American Studies. Hillary plans on pursuing a career in medicine and public health. She plans on serving communities with disparate access to healthcare, specifically communities of color. She became interested in public health after working at emergency rooms and clinics across the city and realizing that patients with a lack of access to primary care were mostly patients of color.
SELF-CARE WORKSHOP MANAGERS, Alyssa Morales '18 and Taylor Fohrhaltz-Burbank '18
Alyssa Morales is a senior at Skidmore College. She is majoring in Political Science and minoring in Mathematics. It comes with no surprise that she wanted to be a part of this conference because of her passion to work on equity for Students of Color at PWIs like Skidmore. She is one of the Co-Coordinators of the Womxn of Color Network at Skidmore. She is a Team Member of the Office of Student Diversity Programs. She is one of the two student representatives of the Bias Response Group. She was president of Raíces, the Latinx club at Skidmore College. She was a part of the Student Government Association as class senator. After Skidmore, Alyssa will go to law school and become a criminal and immigration public defender. She will also work in a non-profit organization that works to help poor people of color recover after being incarcerated.
Taylor Fohrhaltz-Burbank is currently a senior at Skidmore College pursuing a major in Music and a minor in Environmental Studies. Taylor has devoted the majority of her time during her Skidmore career to both the cello and orchestral conducting. While not in the practice room, Taylor has also become heavily involved in the fields of musicology/ethnomusicology where she has been most able to find the intersection between conversations of social identity/social justice and music. Taylor had the privilege of starting off her Skidmore career with the Scribner Seminar entitled Music, Race, and Class, which was taught by ethnomusicologist Professor Ouyang Bryant. This class not only introduced Taylor to conversations surrounding social identity, but helped inspire students within the class to continue these conversations throughout the rest of their Skidmore College careers. It is Taylor’s hope that through this conference she can highlight the powerful work POC musicians have been doing surrounding topics of liberation and music as self-care.
FACILITIES AND MATERIALS OFFICER, Jane Moretta-Miller '18
Jane Moretta-Miller is a senior, Political Science and Social Work double major. A San Francisco native, she grew up in the rapidly gentrified Mission District, which has inspired her pursuit of Social Justice through institutional change. Observing as those with unlimited funds through employment in tech industries replaced and evicted those denied any possibility to attain a similar social capital left her searching for long term solutions. Developing a political sense of self as the murder of black and brown bodies by police was publicized, the school to prison pipeline further exposed, and the similarities between prison and Jim Crow where expanded upon, Jane came to note the role of public policy in shaping reality. This quickly became her passion, and with the help of encouraging professors and peers at Skidmore College, she was able to manifest that passion into a lifestyle of community participation, career pathways, and academic growth. She is currently working at the New York State Assembly as an intern for Andrew Hevesi, the Assembly Member for the 28th district of New York (Queens), and the chair of the Committee on Social Services. This has allowed Jane to experience and observe first-hand the process of social change with the goal of Social Justice through legislation. She also works as a research assistant for the Social Work department, which has allowed her to deepen her understanding of marginalized and typically oppressed populations. Jane is also an RA, and serves on the Senior Gift Committee, allowing her to facilitate a feeling of community on Skidmore’s campus.
PRINTING AND PUBLICATIONS OFFICER, Morgan Dagnicourt '18
Morgan is a social work major with a minor in intergroup relations (IGR) and plans to pursue the ongoing discussion of the country's welfare in postgraduate work. He currently does advocacy and legislative work at Planned Parenthood in the Capital District.
CONFERENCE VIDEOGRAPHER, Emily Rizzo '18
Emily Rizzo is a senior at Skidmore College. She is an English major with a double minor in Intergroup Relations (IGR) and Media and Film Studies. Her passion for social justice drives most of her audio and film work, including an audio documentary about Cape Town comedians who use laughter as liberation and to bridge the deep racial divides in post-apartheid South Africa. Emily is currently co-facilitating an IGR dialogue between people of color and white people and working on her senior project documentary film about reproductive justice and stand-up comedy. As a white identifying individual, it is an honor to be making the ELC’s promotional video this year. Emily believes it is important, and necessary, to constantly reflect on and question her position and privilege and to support the initiatives of her peers of color in all different kinds of ways.
CONFERENCE PHOTOGRAPHER, Jesus Pancho Cuahutle '20
Jesus is a sophomore pursuing an academic career at Skidmore College. He is involved in photography, chess, and international union clubs. While off campus, Jesus enjoys photography, landscapes and portraits of Mexican descent. "I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice no matter who it's for, or against" - Malcolm X.
CONFERENCE RUNNERS, Kali Villarosa '18, Ashley Polanco '18 and Olivia Golden '18
Kali Villarosa is a Skidmore College senior majoring in international affairs with minors in political science and intergroup relations (IGR). She is very involved in campus life as the president of the student clubs Speakers Bureau, Model EU and Benef-Action, as well as participating as an IGR research assistant, and in student activism. As a woman of color from Brooklyn, NY, she works to elevate the voices and experiences of people of color through dialogue, research, and journalism. She plans to continue to grad school post-undergrad for a masters in urban policy and planning, with a focus in housing rights.
Ashley Polanco is a senior majoring in Sociology and minoring in Intergroup Relations. She was born and raised in Harlem, NY, and she identifies as Dominican-American, afro-latina and Caribbean. She is a student assistant at the Office of Student Diversity Programs and a former research assistant for Intergroup Relations. She is a trained facilitator in topics of social justice, and she is currently co-facilitating the first intragroup people of color dialogue here at Skidmore. She constantly thinks about power, agency, and positionality in relation to identity. She believes one cannot critically examine their identity without thinking about the simultaneous relationship between the past and present. She enjoys conversations about identity and self-definition. In her free time, she writes short poems and hangs out with friends.
Olivia Golden grew up in Niskayuna, New York - just over 30 minutes from Skidmore College. She is an Environmental Studies major with a minor in Studio Art. When she is not in class, Olivia enjoys shoveling compost for the Skidmore College Sustainability Office, organizing campus events with the Student Government Association, and playing for the Skidmore Quidditch team. For the past two summers, Olivia helped to oversee Roots and Wisdom, which is an urban agriculture and job-training program for high school students. One of the goals of the program is to increase access to local food in low-income communities. Olivia’s work with Roots and Wisdom fostered her passion for social justice. After graduation, she would like to pursue a career in environmental planning and develop spaces where people of all different backgrounds can come together. During her time at Skidmore, Olivia had the opportunity to partake in an intergroup relations dialogue. This helped her to understand the importance of dialogue in giving people with marginalized identities safe spaces to share their experiences. Olivia is excited to be a part of the Envisioning LiberaT.I.O.N. Conference. She hopes to become a better ally to people of color and help generate a more inclusive campus community.