Change is Coming: COTC and Ohio State Newark host 2021 Virtual Black Heritage Gala

The theme of this year’s Black Heritage Gala, Change is Coming, reflects recent events and sentiment in society, our community and our campus.

Guest speaker Dorian Harrison, The Ohio State University at Newark professor of teaching and learning, will give a talk entitled “We are Still Here – Continuing Justice Efforts” for the gala. The event will be at 6 p.m. on February 25 via Zoom. It is free and open to the public.

Harrison’s talk will draw examples from historical movements in American society that propelled legislators to change oppressive laws and systems and use them to help guide attendees on the current movement.

“Movements for racial justice, economic justice, gender equality and economic equality have been at the forefront of changes during my lifetime. We are now faced with the reality that those efforts are still in motion,” said Harrison.

She will challenge attendees with and answer questions like what makes this time in history different and what are our hopes for tomorrow?

“We must ground ourselves in both distant and more recent histories of social movements for change. We must realize who we are and who we want to be during these events. Change is still in progress and change is the hope for a new tomorrow,” she said.

Register for the gala at go.osu.edu/blackheritagegala2021.

If you require an accommodation to participate fully, please contact Connie Zang at zang.3@osu.edu. Requests should be made as soon as possible but no later than February 11. Requests will be accepted beyond that date and every effort to provide a needed accommodation will be made.

Central Ohio Technical College and The Ohio State University at Newark have forged an outstanding array of educational opportunities for the central Ohio region and beyond. This partnership is viewed as a model for higher education in the state of Ohio. At Central Ohio Technical College, students gain hands-on, applicable experience to begin working in the field, or to transfer those credits toward a bachelor’s degree program. The Ohio State University at Newark offers an academic environment that’s challenging but supportive with world-renowned professors and access to Ohio State’s more than 200 majors.