The Spring 2025 CSIEME Dinner will be held on Thursday, April 17, 2025 @ 7 p.m. at KOMOL Thai Restaurant, 953 E. Sahara Avenue, Suite #E-10, Las Vegas, NV, 89104, (702) 731-9268. KOMOL is located inside the very large Commercial Center. Coming from campus, head North on Maryland. Go two miles to Sahara (about 2 miles), turn left onto Sahara and go to the first light (about 1/10 of a mile). Turn left at that light onto Commercial Center Drive. You will immediately come to a small concrete road divider, when you do, turn right and drive alongside the divider until it ends (it's not very long), then turn immediately left and continue forward. KOMOL will be on your left in the middle of the block of businesses on that side (which is in the middle) of the Center. Here’s a link to KOMOL’s very robust menu: https://www.komolthai.com/

Please RSVP below! However, for the critical love of, and critical care for, our CSIEME community, if you’re not 🤒 feeling well 🤕, as always, please stay home and take care of you! ❤️‍🩹 We promise to invoke your spirit 🧘🏽‍♀️ and to share photos with you.

We hope that with this advance notice everyone can arrange to join us, at least for part of the time (come early or late, even if just for a few minutes)—it is never the same when not everyone is there! If this is not possible, of course we understand and will still toast you and your accomplishments! If you know for sure you will not be able to join us in person, consider recording and then sending us a short video to say hello and to update us on what you are working on/doing in your personal, academic, professional life to share at the dinner!

For those of you new to this dinner—WELCOME! For the rest of you—WELCOME BACK!!

For all attendees, the purpose of the dinner is…to build, deepen, and sustain relationships as a part of a critically loving teacher-scholar-activist community.

For students, the purpose of this dinner is also…to discuss, relative to your programs of study, where each of you are, what you have already and still want to accomplish this semester/academic year, and what you need from the community to achieve your goals.

We will continue the CSIEME Dinner tradition of honoring continuing and new CSIEME program students and students in other programs who are CSIEME-connected (at all academic levels, full or part-time), as well as faculty, affiliate faculty, part-time instructors, and graduate teaching assistants!

As an FYI, this dinner is organized around:

1) the students that are in the CSIEME specializations at either the doctoral or masters level (and certificate programs), as well as CSIEME graduates who are still living locally/visiting the area;

2) masters and doctoral students in other specializations whose committees CSIEME core faculty chair or sit on as a member, as well as graduates who are still living locally/visiting the area; AND,

3) all affiliated/interested “others.”

The dinner is designed to be intersectionally inclusive and affirming, not cliquey, so if you know of others who would like to attend, please invite them and let us know they are coming. Also, please let us know if we missed someone that you know should be included based on the “organizing” criteria :-)

And, as is always the case, children, significant others, other family and friends are welcome to join us, just let us know they are coming!

REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING EVERYONE…and to continuing to build connections with ole timer’s in, and newbies to, our community!

Don't forger to RVSP below!

Best,

Norma, Marla, Danielle, & Christine

———

Norma A. Marrun, Ph.D.

Associate Professor and Co-Coordinator of CSIEME

Co-Director of the Center for Multicultural Education

norma.marrun@unlv.edu

Marla Goins, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of CSIEME

marla.goins@unlv.edu

Danielle Mireles, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of CSIEME

Racial Equity and Social Justice Cluster

danielle.mireles@unlv.edu

Christine Clark, Ed.D.
Professor and Co-Coordinator of CSIEME

Co-Director of the Center for Multicultural Education

Senior Scholar in Multicultural Education & Founding Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion

chris.clark.unlv@me.com and 702.985.6979 (cell)

Department of Teaching & Learning

College of Education

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

www.csieme.us

Image Description for background tiled image surrounding all text and image boxes: Hand-embroidered tapestry entitled, Mudun Falastin (Palestinian Cities) by artist Jordan Nassar. "Practiced in the art of traditional Palestinian embroidery techniques, Nassar creates visionary, even utopian, landscapes. His work speaks to our collective hopes for a better future, presenting it humbly and directly through the small scale of his creations. His hand-crafted pieces manage to be both politically charged and optimistic, qualities of equal importance in times of tumult" (https://www.documentjournal.com/2018/05/jordan-nassar-is-delicately-weaving-new-life-into-one-of-palestines-cultural-legacies/).

Palestinian-American, and self-described "flamingly gay," Nassar's "hand embroidered textile pieces address an intersecting field of language, ethnicity and the embedded notions of heritage and homeland..." and examine "conflicting issues of identity and cultural participation using geometric patterning adapted from Islamic symbols present in traditional Palestinian hand embroidery. Nassar generates these symbols via computer and then meticulously hand stitches them onto carefully mapped-out patterns. In the enmeshing and encoding of these symbols within his work, Nassar roots his practice in a linguistic and geopolitical field of play characterized by both conflict and unspoken harmony" (https://anatebgi.com/artists/jordan-nassar/).

"Born and raised in New York City, Nassar’s work is a dialogue on longing—one set against the backdrop of the Palestinian diaspora—for a peaceful resolution to difficult conditions in the Middle East." He is married to the Israeli-born artist, Amir Guberstein, thus, "this resolution is often portrayed across his work in open, embracing terms" (https://www.documentjournal.com/2018/05/jordan-nassar-is-delicately-weaving-new-life-into-one-of-palestines-cultural-legacies/).

Image descriptions for six smaller images above this text box:

Freedom to Be: Mural Art titled, "Remember Trans Power, Fight for Trans Freedom" (also written in the image at the top), by Micah Bazant with Just Seeds for the Trans Day of Resilience Art Project in collaboration with the Audre Lorde Project: On a, from top to bottom, ombréd white, black, teal, sea blue, and purple background. Black and white bars on the sides and at the bottom of the image depict prison cells and border walls. In the center of the image are two Trans people of Color. The person in the back, with short, softly spiked turquoise, green, yellow, black, and white hair, a black elongated tear-dropped earring in their right ear, wearing a white dress, looking forward with a proud look on their face, has their right arm around the person in the front and and their left arm uplifted; the person in the front, with shaved and longer, harder spiked black hair, is unclothed and pregnant, has their right arm uplifted, and their left hand grasping the white and black prison cell bars, pulling them away from/out of their chest and baby belly. At the bottom of the image is the Audre Lorde Project logo and the caption, "Trans freedom means a world free of violence that separates us from our bodies, spirits, communities + the earth. Trans freedom means a world without borders and deportation. Trans freedom means abolishing all prisons, jails + detention centers!"

Freedom to Live: Photographer Gritchelle Fallesgon and background mural’s artist Lliam Werproc (aka Will Corprew) for Disabled and Here. Photo of a Deaf Black man wearing glasses, with a Black and white beard, a septum piercing, and with his hair pulled back in a bandana looking pensively at the photographer while holding a hand lettered sign declaring “NOTHING about us without US.” The background, graffiti-style mural, features a Black woman with curly shortish Black hair with blue accents; she is looking down in thought wearing colorful top and set against a muted Black, orange, and forrest green backdrop.

Freedom to Move: An AI-generated artistic image for a California Endowment and National Immigration Law Center campaign for immigrant rights posted to IG with this caption, "When we say, 'DACA is not enough,' we mean that we need a permanent solution that protects our right to stay, live & thrive in the country that is our home—without an expiration date or the looming threat of a bad court decision. ...we are #HereToStay": On a black background with turquoise and yellow stars, four determined-looking multiracial people facing in different directions, dressed in colorful tops, pants, and shoes, one with long black curly hair, one with short black hair and a turquoise baseball cap, one with a long black braided ponytail, and one with long white curly hair, hold up the pink-to-red ombréed letters in the words that spell out, "DACA Is Not Enough."

Gender Justice: Mural Art (untitled) by Laura Callahan for ONE's "Poverty is Sexist" Gender Equality Campaign: On a bright pink background seven female-presenting multiracial people with stridently determined looks on their faces, dressed in pink, black, orange and white tops, skirts, pants, and dresses, one wearing gold hoop earrings, one wearing a keffiyeh, one wearing and African head tie, one wearing dark black sunglasses, one with very short cropped hair, one with a large loose natural black afro, one with long straight black hair, one with long wavy black hair, one with short straight black hair, roll large orange signs with the female gender symbol (circle above a cross) in the center and the words "None Are Equal" around the borders to the left as if towards an unseen destination.

Economic Justice: Mural Art title, "A New and Unsettling Force," by Jane Norling with Just Seeds for the Poor People's Campaign: On a tan background a group of multiracial people march with black, tan, and gold signs for: "Unity," "Love," "Justice," "#Moral Revival," and "Taking Action Together" for the "Poor People's Campaign." At the bottom of the mural is a gold banner that reads in black font, "A New and Unsettling Force," and then below that, "When Poor People Take Action Together They Will Do So With a Freedom and Power that Will Be a New and Unsettling Force" a quote by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the organizer of the original, 1967, Poor People's Campaign.

Land Justice: AI-generated artistic image in the style of artist Shepard Fairey for a Jewish Voice for Peace postcard: Two female-presenting people, both with serious expressions on their faces: one Palestinian wearing a a black keffiyeh against a red and green background, with a left-facing Palestinian flag tattoo on the left check, the face is shaded in black, cream, red, green and white; and the other Israeli with long black hair against a cerulean and navy blue background, wearing a six-pointed star earring in the left ear, and with a right-facing 'I Refuse to Occupy" tattoo on the left check, the face is shaded in black, cerulean and lighter blue, and white. At the top of the image, a banner, with a half-navy blue (above the Palestinian) and half-green (above the Israeli) background in white font reads, "Israelis and Palestinians. Two Peoples, One Future." At the bottom of the image, a banner, with black background in white font reads, "www.JewishVoiceforPeace.org" The back of the postcard (not visible in the image) reads, "...Together we are building a powerful voice...[recognizing] the inherent value of each and every human being, regardless of where they are born, what language they speak, or the color of their skin. With your help we will succeed in creating a U.S. foreign policy that respects the human rights of Palestinians, Israelis, and all people of the Middle East."

Image Description: Illustration by artist Erin K. Robinson. At the top of the image in Black font it reads, "Teaching Hope in Hard Times" and then below that in gray font it reads, "Illustrator: Erin Robinson." Below these lines is an image of a dark brown skin person with long black hair in a ponytail wearing muted red long sleeve shirt, navy blue pants and purple boots. In a dark gray room, they are standing on a muted white ladder on the left side of an open white washed wood framed window with one hand outstretched to a colorful bird, one of many flying outside the window against a teal green and turquoise blue landscape of grass, water, and hills. Below the image in Black font is the phrase, "What makes public education so dangerous is that it is grounded in hope."