About Us
The Center for Belonging and Social Change partners with students, campus partners, and community stakeholders to cultivate an inclusive, empowering, and equity-minded campus community through advocacy, education, and support.
The Center for Belonging and Social Change aspires for all students to live and learn in a welcoming campus community wherein:
- Students’ lived experiences reflecting the impact of today’s society are recognized and addressed through policies and practices that achieve equitable access, visibility, and valuing of marginalized communities.
- Students develop and demonstrate empathy and compassion for self and others through experiential learning opportunities and civic engagement.
- Students form and sustain a sense of belonging and identity pride through community-building opportunities and peer connections.
- Students’ self-efficacy, empowerment, and resilience are nurtured through meaningful mentorship and skill-building programs.
Our Mission
To facilitate the inclusive shared learning experiences of students where all can engage in dialogue, challenge barriers and build collaborative relationships.
Our Vision
Universal participation in establishing an intellectually vibrant and socially just community.
Our Values
- TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATION: We contribute to the academic mission of the university by facilitating thought-provoking and participatory learning experiences.
- COMMUNITY:We actively build an inclusive and positive environment for all members of The Ohio State University community.
- COLLABORATION: We recognize that this important work on behalf of students is most effective when we pool our collective wisdom and resources.
- INNOVATION: We continually enhance our services and vision by being open to, seeking and creatively implementing new ideas.
- SOCIAL JUSTICE: We inspire individuals and groups to examine systems of privilege and oppression.
- EMPOWERMENT: We engage individuals and groups to develop their own sense of power in order to bring about social change.
- TRADITION: We invite all individuals and groups to bring personal and cultural traditions together to enrich the Ohio State community.
Our Goals
We will build community by cultivating an inclusive and positive university climate through
- operating a safe and welcoming space on campus that serves as a center for dialogue, learning and community;
- partnering with individuals, groups, academic affairs and other student life units to offer initiatives that connect people through community service, social engagement, cultural celebration and shared understanding;
- working with the university to continuously track and address issues of discrimination and bias that affect university members; and
- maintaining an interactive website that is a comprehensive, useful resource.
We will contribute to the academic experience by fostering students' ability to think critically through
- collaborating with academic units to create dialogue, inspire reflection and arouse new viewpoints for intellectual growth within the Ohio State community; and
- implementing co-curricular programs to explore and teach concepts around privilege, oppression and intra- and inter-group relations.
We will provide students with resources to promote social justice at Ohio State and around the world through
- creating innovative tools to raise awareness about established and emerging social identities; and
- facilitating collaborative campus-wide initiatives that promote intercultural exchange, civic involvement, equity and access.
We will facilitate students' individual transformation through
- offering advocacy and outreach to address students' cultural, educational, emotional, physical and spiritual needs;
- supporting and challenging students to explore their ethics and values on personal, social and professional levels; and
- providing leadership development opportunities for students to build community, contribute to the academic experience and empower others to become change agents for social justice.
View our calendar to see a schedule of our upcoming events.