Social Justice and Community Engagement Program

The Social Justice and Community Engagement Program (SJCE) is a certificate-earning program for all students interested in enhancing their college experience through co-curricular involvement focused on diversity, social justice and leadership.

SJCE provides diversity training through flexible, engaging and experiential learning and serves as a unique way of supporting student identity and interpersonal development. Earning a SJCE certificate is a great way for students to show future employers or graduate/professional schools that they had a vested interest in diversity and social justice during their time at Ohio State Newark.

To earn your SJCE certificate, you must complete the following parts. Parts 1 and 2 are due April 13. If interested in the program go to https://go.osu.edu/mcainterests and click on all interested topics, especially SJCE.

Part 1: Attend 4 Events (due: April 13)

Attend a program hosted or supported by the Student Life Multicultural Affairs at Ohio State Newark

Student Life Multicultural Affairs hosts or supports many programs throughout the year. Some programs are hosted or supported during particular heritage or awareness months (e.g. Latinx Heritage Month, Women’s History Month, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month) while others are series of events over a period of time. To see what programs count as a SJCE event, please visit our events listing. The events on the schedule that count for SJCE credit will have “(SJCE)” after the title of the event. Please note that not every event hosted or supported by Multicultural Affairs will count for DICE. If there is an event that you are very interested in attending that you hope to count for SJCE credit, please contact the SJCE Program Coordinator at Ohio State Newark.

Attend a program hosted by the Center for Belonging & Social Change (CBSC)

The Student Life Multicultural Center hosts many programs throughout the year. Some programs are hosted during particular heritage or awareness months (e.g. Latinx Heritage Month, Women’s History Month, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month) while others are series of events over a period of time. To see what programs count as a DICE event, please browse our events and look for education and training. On the calendar, the events that count for Diversity, Intercultural and Community Engagement (DICE) credit will have “(DICE)” after the title of the event. Please note that not every event hosted by CBSC will count for DICE. If there is an event that you are very interested in attending that you hope to count for DICE credit, please contact the DICE Program Coordinator. Another easy way to learn about upcoming programs is to sign up for a CBSC newsletter that is sent out every other week.

Attend an approved Social Justice & Community Engagement (SJCE) Workshop (external)

The Social Justice Engagement (SJE) team offers many workshops (called Buck-Identity workshops) throughout the year. These workshops can be requested by any Ohio State/COTC community members, including student organizations, sororities and fraternities, residence halls, and academic classes. If you attend one of these workshops through an organization you are in, this can count for a DICE credit. The facilitator should remind you about DICE at the end of the workshop. Another easy way to learn about upcoming workshops is to sign up for the SJCE mailing list.

Part 2: Final Reflection Paper (due: April 13)

After you have completed Part 1, please complete Part 2, the final reflection paper. Guidelines are below.

Paper requirements

  • 12-point font
  • At least 1,200 words

Questions to consider

  • What did you learn overall through the SJCE certificate program?
  • Reflect on the “Part 1” SJCE (DICE) events you attended. What are some things you learned through attending each of these programs and why did you choose the programs that you did?
  • Why is diversity and social justice work important to your education as an Ohio State/COTC student?
  • How do you hope to continue engaging in this work beyond completing this certificate?
  • How will you apply what you learned through SJCE (DICE) to your life at or beyond Ohio State or COTC?
  • How do you view the importance of self-reflection in social justice/inclusion work?
  • What improvements could be made to the SJCE program to enhance student learning?

You do not have to answer all of the above questions, but you should allow the questions to prompt your thinking and reflection as you write this paper. If you need further prompts to help your writing process, please contact Vorley Taylor.

Submission instructions

To earn credit for the paper, you should email it to Vorley Taylor along with your SJCE Tracking Form by April 13.

Part 3: Peer Advocacy-Host/Facilitate a Program on a Topic of your Choice

Part 3 of the SJCE Certificate program allows for flexible and creative program planning. This certificate can not be earned without completing Parts 1 & 2. You can host anything from a small program or dialogue on campus through Multicultural Affairs or in your residence hall to a larger program through Multicultural Affairs or Newark Housing. The program should center on a diversity or social justice topic that is of interest to you. The program should last approximately one hour.

  • What was the topic of your program for Part 3?
  • What was your program about and why did you choose that topic?
  • What went well in the program?
  • What would you do differently if you were to host the same program again?
  • How does your topic relate to diversity and social justice?

If you are interested in completing this option, you should email Vorley Taylor.