“Your Voice Matters”: Caldwell University holds third annual Social Justice Symposium

More than 275 people gathered on March 1 for Caldwell University’s third annual Social Justice Symposium with the theme “Your Voice Matters.”

University faculty, staff and students, community leaders and high school students attended panels such as “Gerrymandering and the U.S. Democracy,” “Preaching Racial Justice with an Unbridled Tongue: How to Be an Anti-racist,” “Looking through Multiple Lenses,” “Singing for Change: Programming with Purpose,” “International Voices for Justice and Social Change,” “Positionality: The Role of Your Own Worldview,” “The Importance of Mental Health Wellness When Engaging in Social Justice on Social Media,” and more.

The day kicked off with remarks from members of the University’s community including Caldwell President Jeffrey Senese, Ph.D., who welcomed the guests. Quoting Ralph Waldo Emerson, Dr. Senese said, “Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.” He encouraged the attendees, as they attended workshops, to think about Emerson’s inspiration. “St. Francis Assisi wrote, ‘Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love.’ And students, ‘sow’ means ‘grow,’” Dr. Senese said. “Your goal today is to learn and to extend your learning, to extend your knowledge, to teach. And whether you are a presenter or an audience member, you are teaching.”

He added, “Why do we do this learning? So we can impact social justice, so we can improve things. That means we can grow love in this society so we can make a difference for good, not for ill. That’s growing love so we can use the power of knowledge to lead the way to a more just and better society. There is truth. There is justice. Grow love.”

Raymond J. Lesniak, a former New Jersey state senator and founder and president of the Lesniak Institute for American Leadership, gave the luncheon keynote, encouraging audience members to understand that by “just being involved” they can make a difference. “You can make your voice heard just by showing up,” said Lesniak, who served in the New Jersey Assembly from 1978 to 1983 and in the New Jersey Senate from 1983 to January 2018.

Lesniak’s talk was followed by a panel discussion with community leaders moderated by Social Justice Institute Symposium organizers and faculty members Stephanie Sitnick, Ph.D., interim associate dean of the School of Psychology and Counseling, and Helen Antoniou McGowan, JD, associate professor in the School of Business and Computer Science.

Senior Denielle Keenan said she appreciated seeing people wanting to learn and better educate themselves and others in order “to advocate for those who can’t advocate for themselves.”

Sophomore Anshuraj Sedai said the forum gave him insights into injustices and inspired him to take action in his community.

Samantha Mundy said that as a Caldwell graduate student in the school counseling program, the symposium was a great opportunity to expand her own knowledge for her students. “The Social Justice Symposium at Caldwell brought a great sense of community and inclusion. I’m proud to be a part of a university that facilitates that.”

McGowan said that the “strong attendance and energy” of the symposium showed that they are addressing a desire in the community to confront pressing issues on social justice. “Our presenters and panelists shared a wealth of expertise on how our voices matter in the local community and on a national level. We are empowered and excited to move forward with more programming for the Social Justice Institute.”

Sitnick and McGowan encouraged attendees to mark their calendars for the fourth annual Social Justice Symposium to be held March 7, 2025.