"AFRICAN AMERICAN IDENTITY ISSUES AND ACADEMIC CLASSROOM PRACTICE"

"What my research revealed was that African American students who do not identify with the academic community do not see it as real; rather, they view their academic education as only a means to an end."

"CREATING PARTNERSHIPS AND A SUPPORTIVE SYSTEM IN THE MINORITY COMMUNITY"

"We have succeeded in gaining a tremendous amount of support in the community and are recognized as a viable member of the minority community in Jackson, Michigan."

"100 CHALLENGES FACING STUDENTS OF COLOR IN THE 21st CENTURY"

"It is particularly critical to assess the impact, given the empirical data available, on institutions in California, Texas, Florida and Washington which anti-affirmative action laws and court orders have been passed/handed down."

“MINORITY STUDENTS WITHIN A COLLEGE OF BUSINESS: HEARING THE VOICES”

"In recognition of the dynamic interplay among academic and social aspects of any student's campus experience, our institution has implemented an Innovative Community Initiative (ICI) which provides a panoply of support programs for students of color."

"TEACHING FROM A CRITICAL, ANTI-RACIST PERSPECTIVE-BASED PEDAGOGY TO PREPARE WHITE STUDENTS FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY: RESISTANCE AND CONSEQUENCES"

How are faculty of color retained once they are recruited? More importantly, how do factors such as white student resistance and negative disposition toward faculty of color impact the retention of faculty of color?

“FAILING TO FIT: STUDENT DEVELOPMENT THEORIES AND STUDENTS OF COLOR”

Theories proposed by Chickering, Astin, Helms, Gilligan, and Perry serve as a framework for under¬standing and explaining the development of college students.

"BREAKING THROUGH THE SOFT SPOKEN STEREOTYPE: THE VOICES OF ASIAN WOMEN IN DOCTORAL PROGRAMS"

This panel session explores how the dynamics of race and gender within university settings influence Asian women’s experiences in graduate psychology programs.

The Legitimacy of Anti-Affirmative Action Initiatives: Didactical Lessons for 21st Century Administrators

“In the next century, with anti-affirmative action measures on the rise, we may unconsciously be reverted back to the 1950’s and 1960’s, whereby our public schools were segregated by race. Didactical lessons for 21st century administrators will be to develop strategies that will keep schools accessible to everyone.”

When "Reason" Is In the Eye of the Beholder: A Reexamination of the "Reasonable Man" Standard as Applied to Organizational Management

“Specifically, issues of race, gender, disability, status, etc. provide a new context in which to judge the reasonableness of an individual’s actions.”

Chicana, Indian and Sudanese Perspectives of Teaching in the Academy: Three Levels of Experience in the Teaching-Learning and Social Environment

“Women of color from any culture or country face additional barriers in predominantly white institutions. This panel presents perspectives and experiences of three women from three cultures and three different levels of academia—a Chicana Latino visiting professor, a graduate teaching assistant from India, and a Sudanese graduate research assistant.”

Juvenile onset systemic lupus erythematosus: a possible role for vitamin D in disease status and bone health

Purpose: In juvenile onset systemic lupus erythematosus (JoSLE), evidence for the association between vitamin D status, lupus activity, and bone health is very limited and not conclusive. The aim of this study was, therefore, to assess in JoSLE patients the possible relevance of vitamin D deficiency in disease and bone parameters. Methods: Fifty-seven JoSLE patients were initially compared to 37 age, race and body mass index (BMI) -matched healthy controls. The serum concentration of 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) was determined by radioimmunoassay. Patients with 25OHD deficiency (acurrency sign20 ng/mL) were compared to those with levels > 20 ng/mL. Disease activity was evaluated by SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI). Bone mineral density (BMD) and body composition (BC) were measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Results: 25OHD levels were similar in patients and controls (21.44 +/- 7.91 vs 22.54 +/- 8.25 ng/mL, p = 0.519), regardless of supplementation (65% of patients and none in controls). Thirty-one patients with 25OHD deficiency (acurrency sign20 ng/mL) were further compared to the 26 JoSLE patients with levels > 20 ng/mL. These two groups were well-balanced regarding vitamin D confounding variables: age (p = 0.100), ethnicity (p = 1.000), BMI (p = 0.911), season (p = 0.502), frequency of vitamin D supplementation (p = 0.587), creatinine (p = 0.751), renal involvement (p = 0.597), fat mass (p = 0.764), lean mass (p = 0.549), previous/current use of glucocorticoids(GC) (p = 1.0), immunosuppressors (p = 0.765), and mean current daily dose of GC (p = 0.345). Patients with vitamin D deficiency had higher SLEDAI (3.35 +/- 4.35 vs 1.00 +/- 2.48, p = 0.018), lower C4 levels (12.79 +/- 6.78 vs 18.38 +/- 12.24 mg/dL, p = 0.038), lower spine BMD (0.798 +/- 0.148 vs 0.880 +/- 0.127 g/cm2, p = 0.037) and whole body BMD (0.962 +/- 0.109 vs 1.027 +/- 0.098 g/cm2, p = 0.024). Conclusion: JoSLE vitamin D deficiency, in spite of conventional vitamin D supplementation, affects bone and disease activity status independent of therapy and fat mass reinforcing the recommendation to achieve adequate levels. Lupus (2012) 21, 1335-1342.