{"id":305,"date":"2024-04-14T08:41:33","date_gmt":"2024-04-14T08:41:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/?p=305"},"modified":"2024-05-26T13:41:28","modified_gmt":"2024-05-26T13:41:28","slug":"the-talent-scout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/index.php\/2024\/04\/14\/the-talent-scout\/","title":{"rendered":"The Talent Scout"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Students in the library.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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Commission for Diversity and Gender Equity<\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The Talent Scout<\/h3>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Bar-Ilan\u2019s new commissioner for diversity and gender equity is working with partners across campus to nurture talent in groups for which a bit of extra support and encouragement can result in tremendous gains\u2014for the University, for academic disciplines, and for Israeli society. <\/h6>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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A More Equal University<\/h3>
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When last year Pres. Arie Zaban decided to focus on the creation of an inclusive and supportive campus environment, it was obvious where to turn: the sociology researcher and then-advisor to the president on gender equity, Prof. Orna Sasson Levy. Having overseen, since 2020, the marked increase in the number of women serving in senior leadership positions, Sasson-Levy had shown that her work could indeed empower individuals to realize their true capacities. Now, Pres. Zaban wanted her to take on a new challenge: lead a commission to maximize the potential of Bar-Ilan\u2019s diversity.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe creation of the Commission for Diversity and Gender Equity is a statement by Zaban and the University leadership that it takes seriously its mission of educating Israel\u2019s next generation,\u201d says Sasson-Levy. \u201cIsraelis are an incredibly diverse group, and a true sign of our success must be ensuring that members of every group in society have an equal chance to succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

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To that end, Sasson-Levy entered office determined to help first-generation college students complete the full course of their degrees. \u201cThis is a group with a high dropout rate, particularly in the first year,\u201d explains Sasson-Levy, \u201cso getting to them early is the most important thing.\u201d The commission had just begun to map these students\u2019 needs and build a plan that included tutoring, peer mentorship, and involvement in the University\u2019s social scene when Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7th. From that moment, Sasson-Levy pivoted to yet another challenge: preventing war-related tensions from erupting on campus.<\/p>\n

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Explaining that her work advanced on two pathways\u2014setting clear codes of conduct, and \u201ccreating the conditions for positive interactions\u201d\u2014Sasson-Levy began to seek out creative methods for facilitating coexistence. The results, which include the receipt of a grant from Yad Hanadiv to train residential\u00a0advisors and another from the United Jewish Appeal to foster cultural understanding, underscore the value of a position dedicated to advancing tolerance and cohesion. \u201cIf not for the commission, these opportunities to forge human connections between different groups would have fallen between the cracks,\u201d concludes Sasson-Levy. \u201cAnd it\u2019s precisely these connections and the sense of safety they provide that allow us to devote our full selves to research and education, and achieve the best possible results.\u201d<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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\n Prof. Orna Sasson-Levy, inaugural head of Bar-Ilan\u2019s Commission for Diversity and Gender Equity. <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Quiet on the Home Front<\/h3>
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At the start of the new semester under the shadow of ongoing war, the Commission for Diversity and Gender Equity was tasked with ensuring that relations between Jewish and Arab students remained civil and respectful, and that campus would be a space free of incitement, coercion, and intolerance. Its activities in this regard included:<\/p>\n

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