From the Nominator

"The Talk: A Journey Toward Anti-Racism is a video series that invited campus community members to talk about their journey to anti-racism, their concerns, and their hope for a world that no longer divides by color, but instead celebrates the commonality of our humanity. The project is a collaboration between our strategic communications and diversity, inclusion, and equity departments.  

The diversity campaign stemmed from the idea of "The Talk"--the conversation about race and anti-Blackness that, unfortunately, people in the Black community are compelled to have with their loved ones from an early age. We developed the concept, which included our first installment--"Temperature Rising"--after the murder of George Floyd. It was a unique chapter in our history as a global pandemic intersected with a worldwide cry for social justice.  

The Talk poses the question of how we can be better. It is one of our most-viewed news microsites. Our diversity and inclusion unit uses the series to spur critical conversations about race. Our president has embraced the series, requiring viewing for his cabinet and our campus community. It is our template for outstanding digital storytelling.  

The Talk is a way to help our campus community and others make sense out of the senseless. We hope that if one person views this work and walks away inspired to help seek change, all the hours spent crafting and creating this work were well worth it."

From the Judges

Multiple judges remarked that this campaign had them watching more than was necessary for judging and reflecting on the stories, so much so that we were quoting some of the anecdotes that clearly hit home. Clearly, a campaign that leaves people reflecting on what they have seen and heard much later is successful! Using personal stories is a way to build stronger connections and a sense of community within the school. We could see how this campaign could be replicated by other schools and for other issues (e.g., mental health and well-being). The simplicity of this campaign was commented on as a perfect way to approach such a critical issue to our school communities and beyond. Fabulous work.