Champions of Change: The RISE Podcast

How is diversity and inclusion defined? How can students, athletes and university athletics departments lead their campus community in advancing those values? That was the subject of this critical conversation moderated by RISE CEO Diahann Billings-Burford at Stony Brook University on Feb. 12, as part of the America East Conference #SpreadRespect initiative. This edited live recording features: Maya Brown, a Stony Brook student and assistant editor at the university’s student-run newspaper, The Statesman; Kimberly Joy Dixon, Stony Brook’s Director of Employer Engagement and Diversity Recruitment; Cameron Avery, a Stony Brook international cross-country student-athlete; TJ Morrison, a Stony Brook football student-athlete and member of the Black Student-Athlete Huddle, and Diamond Weaver, a Stony Brook Assistant Football Coach.

Molly Engstrom is a 2-time Olympic Medalist and 4-time World Champion for USA Hockey, who was named the world’s best defenseman from the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver. She’s played professionally in North America and in Sweden, and recently participated in a session at the USA Hockey Annual Congress in Colorado Springs on diversity & inclusion led by RISE and White Men as Full Diversity Partners, where players, coaches and administrators discussed addressing racism and diversifying the sport. Molly shares insights from that conversation, talks about her professional career and Olympic experience, and discusses the state and future of women’s professional hockey with the best players in the U.S. and Canada actively calling for better pay, better conditions and a stronger professional league in North America.

Former all-pro defensive tackle Tommie Harris talks about empowering student-athletes and how we as a society can advance unity, diversity and equality by learning from lessons in sports. He also shares the best advice he ever received from an NFL coach. Tommie will be a featured panelist along with former NFL RB Larry Johnson and NFLPA Staff Counsel Joe Briggs in an upcoming campus conversation April 2nd at Prairie View A&M University that will be moderated by RISE, entitled "The Power of Sport: Creating a Nation Committed to Equality & Social Justice." Jahmeilla Hunter, a graduate student at Prairie View A&M who is researching athlete activism, speaks about the importance of this conversation and why she and her classmates are organizing this event on their campus.

Adia Barnes, Arizona's women's basketball coach, led the Wildcats to the Women’s NIT Championship this spring, following a season in which the team won only six games. Adia, who also played at Arizona and is the program's all-time leading scorer, talks about being one of the few female coaches of color in the sport, and discusses the importance of diversity in leadership and coaching. She also shares how she’s worked with RISE to empower her student-athletes to lead others in advancing values of inclusion and equality, and tells us about winning a WNBA championship and playing with all-time greats like Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson.

RISE’s Sumer 2021 intern class takes over this episode. They reflect on their time with RISE and discuss how they will apply their learnings and experiences from this summer to create more inclusive cultures in their respective campuses and communities. Featuring RISE Summer 2021 interns: Diego Andrade-Cabrera, Morgan Chall, Alexis Cheatum, Marcus Davis, A’kiem Gardner, Bradley Polkowitz and Drew Schiffer. Episode Breakdown: Learning about identity, breaking down biases and connecting with diverse colleagues(3:45); Key diversity concepts and applying learnings to create change(17:03); Collegiate athlete activism (27:18); Defining leadership (39:05); Biggest takeaways (41:30).