The Center for “Race,” Culture and Social Justice at Hofstra University

My name is Benita Sampedro and I am a Professor of Spanish in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, as well as in the Latin and Caribbean Studies Program, here at Hofstra. I am also one of the Associate Directors of the Center for “Race,” Culture and Social Justice. I would first like to acknowledge my two other colleagues at the Center: Dr. Veronica Lippencott, also Associate Director, and Dr. Jonathan Lightfoot, who serves as the Director.   We have come here today to formally thank Dean Mark Lukasiewicz and Vice Dean Mario Murillo, of The Lawrence Herbert School of Communications, for being the pioneering unit on campus to offer a day-long Diversity and Inclusiveness training session for faculty; we hope this will serve as an example for the other schools to follow. We also thank Elaine Gross, President of EraseRacism Long Island and Dr. Sofia Pertuz, who currently serves on the Board of EraseRacism and the Advisory Board of the Center for “Race”, and most recen