Statements of Support

​​​June 21, 2022

DMACC is excited to recognize and support the members of the LGBTQ+ community this Pride month. We know that members of the LGBTQ +community, and our transgender students and employees in particular, may be experiencing stress, worry, or anxiety as a result of actions across the nation that have impacted LGBTQ+ people in recent months. We want to affirm that DMACC deeply values our transgender, non-binary, and LGBTQ+ students and employees and works to do our part to support their full inclusion in campus life and in Iowa’s communities.

DMACC is supporting several Pride-related events this month, including participation in Capital City Pride. Our college celebrates and supports the LGBTQ+ community year-round through a variety of services and campus organizations.

1. The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) works to ensure that all students and employees are fully welcomed and included at DMACC.

2. You can reach out to our Diversity Commission, who address equity and inclusion in our college and our community at: DiversityCommission@dmacc.edu or find more information on the Office of DEI’s website​.

3. Our LGBTQ Affinity Group welcomes students, staff, and faculty; for information on attending meetings or to get access to further resources, please email LGBTQAffinity@dmacc.edu.
   

4. Campuses throughout the DMACC district have student clubs that support LGBTQ+ students, which the Office of DEI will be glad to connect you with: The Rainbow Alliance in Ankeny; the Boone Social Justice Club; DMACC United at Newton; and other supportive groups on other campuses.

5. Finally, our counseling services are always available at no cost for any student. DMACC counselors provide academic and mental health counseling and advocacy services that enhance a student's well-being within a confidential, safe, and culturally-honoring environment.
   

Thank you for your support of DMACC.

Rob Denson, DMACC President

​​​March 11, 2022

The continued escalation of violence against civilians in the war against Ukraine is deeply disturbing and tragic. Our thoughts are with the Ukrainian community, both those who are living in the United States and those who are in Ukraine fighting or fleeing as refugees to other nations around the world.

As a globally diverse higher education institution, DMACC has staff, faculty, and students who are from Ukraine, Russian and other Eastern European nations as well as other nations in the world where civil unrest, large-scale violence, governmental suppression, and persecution of civilian populations is a constant reality and threat. We encourage everyone in the DMACC community to provide additional outreach and sensitivity to colleagues, students, staff, and faculty who are directly impacted by the current conflict. We also want to ensure that discrimination or bias of any kind against students, staff, faculty or administrators who may be of Russian or any other decent does not occur in our efforts to support our Ukrainian colleagues and students.

We understand students, faculty, and staff may be affected by the events of the week between Russia and Ukraine. As a DMACC community, our hope is that we choose to come together and support each other. DMACC students, we want you to know that you can find support throughout our institution as well as our counseling services.

DMACC faculty and staff, we want all of you to know that we support you during this time and offer the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through our Human Resources office that can provide additional resources and support. For more information, please contact Jenifer Owenson at jsowenson1@dmacc.edu​.​​

​​​March 18, 2021

​​We are disheartened, sad and outraged about this week's shootings in Atlanta and by the rise in Anti-Asian American Pacific Islander (API) attacks across the country. On behalf of the entire DMACC community, we condemn any verbal and physical violence targeted at our Asian and Pacific Islander communities. From conversation with our own community partners, these acts and experiences have led to fear, and have taken a psychological and physical toll within the API communities.

​To the DMACC Community:

Our hearts remain heavy and troubled with recent events.

“I can’t breathe” was the plea made by Eric Garner before he died at the hands of New York City police in 2014, and that same plea for life was made by George Floyd as a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck on May 25, 2020.

The horrifying and unnecessary death of Mr. Floyd, just weeks after the murder of Ahmaud Arbery and the shooting of Breonna Taylor, has brought national attention to the racism, police brutality and disparities of justice that continue to exist in our nation.

This is a deeply painful time for our entire community, and especially for our Black students and colleagues, with rightful and overwhelming feelings of anger, fear, frustration and grief expressed and shared by many.

These tragedies, and any others like them, must stop, and the unacceptable inequalities and daily mistreatment faced by Black Americans and other marginalized community members cannot be tolerated.

At DMACC, we stand firmly against discrimination of any kind. Our diversity is our strength, and our commitment to fostering an inclusive and welcoming College community is unwavering. Each of us has a responsibility to reject racism, bias and prejudice, and by listening to and supporting one another, we can make deeper, more meaningful connections, increase understanding and respect, and help create real and positive change, together.

To every member of our DMACC community, please know that we see you, we care about you and we stand together with you. We are here for you if you need a place to talk, to share your feelings and concerns, and to find additional support. We don’t always have to agree, but we do have to listen until we understand.

DMACC counselors can provide direct assistance to students and also make community referrals. To connect with a counselor, visit https://www.dmacc.edu/counseling/Pages/welcome.aspx​​. Our DMACC employees can also find support and resources at the DMACC Employee Assistance Program website.

Additionally, all DMACC students and employees are strongly encouraged to attend and participate in the DMACC Diversity Commission’s “Voices of Diversity” Virtual Listening Session from Noon to 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 11. This session will create a space in which our Black students, staff and faculty, and all members of our DMACC community, can share their frustrations, anxieties, anger and experiences regarding issues of racism and inequality with DMACC leadership and the larger DMACC community, and have those experiences heard and acknowledged. To join this event, please use your DMACC email address to register at https://bit.ly/VoicesofDiversity.