a group of young diverse students looking at the camera

Graduate Student and Postdoc Certificate Series

Overview

This series encourages graduate students and postdocs to consider how their research and career aspirations position them to respond to global challenges. Participants will be provided insights from mid- and late-career professionals on how to improve networking and leadership skills for success in intercultural work environments, whether in the public, private, or academic sectors.

Participants have the opportunity to connect and network with people in leadership positions, from various backgrounds and different fields. Additionally, participants receive valuable insights into both academia and industry, with tips on how to translate skill sets, transition into different positions, and take advantage of professional development opportunities. Please note this is not a for-credit course.

How do I sign up?

There are currently five seminar sessions offered across the spring quarter; participants must attend a minimum of four seminars to receive the certificate.

Participants who complete at least four of five sessions receive a Certificate of Completion signed by Prof. Joanna Regulska, Vice Provost and Dean of Global Affairs.

Global Affairs Career Enhancement Certificate: Exploring DEI to Help Create an Inclusive Workplace:
  • Week 1: What is Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and Why Do We Talk About It? (April 15, 4–5 p.m.)

  • •  Identify core DEI concepts, definitions and their importance in job searching, the workplace and daily life.
    • Speaker: Linda Amrou
     

    • About our speaker: Linda Amrou is an international human rights and immigration attorney with over a decade of experience developing and executing complex, innovative global programs and development initiatives within academic institutions. She currently serves as Global Affairs’ assistant director for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at UC Davis.

    In her previous roles, she has promulgated global programs including designing and launching a scholarship at Columbia University that put forth a $6 million commitment to support 30 displaced students annually with full tuition, living assistance, and wrap-around services to ensure student success. Linda has also served as a consultant to a global nonprofit where she created diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives for its 3,000 members representing top Fortune 500 firms. She is a U.S. Department of State Gilman Scholar, recipient of the Jefferson Award for Public Service, and previously served as President of the International Law Students Association (ILSA) where she lectured internationally and organized programming that served thousands of international students from more than 500 institutions and over 80 countries across the globe.

  • Week 2: Intercultural Communication (April 22, 4–6 p.m.)
  • •  To increase awareness of how differences in communication styles and cultural values affect our interactions with one another; to increase our competence in communicating effectively and appropriately in cross cultural interactions.
    •  Speakers: Eric Sanchez and Christopher Nguyen Pheneger
    •  About our speakers: Eric supports the campus diversity and inclusion education program primarily in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) course facilitation, curriculum design, and program coordination, which also includes being called upon by academic and administrative departments and units regarding diversity and inclusion issues. He also supports UC Davis affiliates, and to a limited extent community members and organizations external to UC Davis, with consultation related to DEI which occasionally evolves into different types of collaboration between groups.

    As a Diversity and Inclusion Educator and Specialist, Christopher provides instructional design, training and facilitation, consultation, and project management for the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Education Program. He joined the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in 2021, where he coordinates and delivers educational and professional development around DEI topics for diverse audiences from various academic and administrative departments across UC Davis and UC Davis Health. Christopher also supports the development and implementation of strategies to operationalize the UC Davis Principles of Community and the UC Davis Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Vision.
  • Week 3: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Global Policymaking (April 29, 12–1 p.m.)
  • •  Recognize and contrast differences in DEI vocabulary used in the U.S. and in global contexts, using the UN Sustainable Development Goals and human rights as frameworks.
    •  Speaker: Jolynn Shoemaker
    •  About our speaker: Jolynn Shoemaker is the Director of Global Engagements in Global Affairs at UC Davis. In this role, she is leading the efforts to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and working on a variety of other strategic international initiatives, including implementation of the campus Global Strategic Plan. She co-teaches an undergraduate class on the SDGs and co-manages an SDG internship at UC Davis. She has also taught national security as an adjunct professor in Political Science at California State University Sacramento. Jolynn spent almost 20 years in Washington DC working on international peace and security, women’s leadership, and human rights. Currently, she continues her policy-focused research on Women, Peace and Security as a non-resident Fellow at the Our Secure Future: Women Make the Difference. During her career, she has worked with a variety of non-profit organizations engaged in research, advocacy, and training for peace and security. Prior to her work in the non-governmental sector, Ms. Shoemaker served in the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Secretary of Defense in both legal and policy positions, and in the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. Ms. Shoemaker has published extensively on human rights, rule of law, gender equality and peacebuilding. She holds a J.D. (focus on international human rights) and an M.A. (Security Studies) from Georgetown University and a B.A. from University of California, San Diego.
  • Week 4: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Global Leadership (May 6, 12–1 p.m.)
  • •  Recognize core intercultural skills desired by employers and how to continue one’s intercultural learning to become a more effective leader in an interconnected and global environment.
    •  Speaker: Robb Davis
    •  About our speaker: Robb Davis is the assistant director at the Aggie Compass Basic Needs Center at UC Davis, where his portfolio includes developing programming for housing-insecure students. Before coming to the Basic Needs Center, he worked for the Center Student Involvement and served as the Impact and Innovation Officer at Yolo Food Bank (YFB), where he lead assessments of the nutritional quality of the food YFB distributes, developed a nutrition policy, and supported the development of a county-wide food security policy. During his time at the Food Bank, he also supported the Healthy Davis Together initiative, focusing on testing and vaccination for underserved populations. Before going to the Food Bank, he was an international student advisor and then the Director of Intercultural Learning in Global Affairs at UC Davis. He was the mayor of the city of Davis and served one term on the City Council from 2014-18.  During his tenure, he led initiatives related to programming for unhoused individuals, restorative justice for youth, community clean energy acquisition, safe cycling, and police oversight. A public health professional with an MPH and Ph.D. from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Robb has over 25 years of experience in the areas of maternal and child health, child nutrition, and food security. He spent two decades working with rural communities in West Africa and India, integrating health education with credit programs and developing participatory learning tools.
  • Week 5: Importance of Writing a Diversity Statement (May 13, 12–1 p.m.)
  • •  Identify important aspects of diversity statements and service in academia and the private sector; compose and edit own diversity statement.
    •  Speaker: Patricia Turner
    •  About our speaker: Patricia Turner, Ph.D. (she/her) is an Education Specialist in the Center for Educational Effectiveness (CEE), located in Undergraduate Education.  She has been teaching at the university level for over two decades. Prior to coming to UC Davis she taught undergraduate and graduate courses in universities across all three systems of public higher education in California.  At CEE, Patricia develops and implements programs to advance teaching and learning at UC Davis. She holds an M.A. in Applied Linguistics from San Diego State University and a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from UCLA.

Contact Information

Staff photo

Jessica Fareri

Program Coordinator, Experiential and Intercultural Programs
Global Learning Hub, Global Affairs
jmfareri@ucdavis.edu