MOSAIC events, speakers emphasize interculturalism

st. john

Bonnie St. John will deliver the
keynote address at this year's
MOSAIC banquet, which begins
at 6:45 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20,
in the J.W. Jones Student Union
Ballroom.

MOSAIC, the Midwest Organization of Students Advancing Interculturalism, will host its second-annual intercollegiate gathering Thursday, Oct. 18, through Saturday, Oct. 20, at Northwest Missouri State University.

The event, with its focus on diversity and multiculturalism, is being held in conjunction with the Northwest Powwow -- a major celebration of Native American culture -- which takes place Saturday, Oct. 20, in Bearcat Arena. Powwow grand entries are scheduled for 1 and 6 p.m.

This year's MOSAIC theme is "Rising Up and Reaching Out." An opening forum and debate is set for 4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 18, in the J.W. Jones Student Union Living Room (second floor).

Subsequent MOSAIC activities Friday and Saturday will include a variety of workshops (2-5 p.m. on Friday and 8 a.m.-noon on Saturday in the union); an open mike night and talent show (Friday); intercollegiate competitions; and "In Honor of our Heroes and the Arts," a Saturday night banquet in the union ballroom featuring Paralympics silver medalist Bonnie St. John.

St. John, who medalled as a skier in the 1984, is a popular inspirational speaker who has been profiled by "The New York Times" and "People" magazine. After losing a leg to amputation at age 5, she went on to fulfill her dream of becoming an athlete.

A Rhodes Scholar and graduate of Harvard University, St. John has appeared on "The Today Show," "Good Morning America," CNN, "Montel," and the Discovery Health Channel.

Her books include "Succeeding Sane: Making Room for Joy in a Crazy World, "Getting Ahead at Work Without Leaving Your Family Behind" and "Money: Fall Down? Get Up!"

A second featured MOSAIC speaker (time and place to be announced) will be Rasheed-Ali Cromwell, a former Student Government Association president at North Carolina A&T State University.

After graduating from North Carolina A&T, Cromwell attended Texas Southern University's Thurgood Marshall School of Law, where he served as class president and associate editor of the law review.

After serving as an associate attorney at a large intellectual property law firm in Washington, D.C., Cromwell joined the Harbor Institute, where he works as a speaker and consultant.

MOSAIC events are open to the public, but participants must register. Northwest students and members of collegiate multicultural organizations in Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri are especially urged to attend. Registration is $10 for students and $20 for advisors and non-students.

To register and access a complete schedule of events, go to www.nwmosaic.com. For more information about MOSAIC, call Ame Lambert, Northwest's director of minority affairs, at 660.562.1517 or e-mail lambert@nwmissouri.edu.

For more information, please contact:

Anthony Brown,
News Bureau Manager
E-Mail: abrown@nwmissouri.edu
Phone (660) 562-1704
Fax (660) 562-1900

Northwest Missouri State University
219 Administration Building,
800 University Drive
Maryville, MO 64468

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