Pittsburgh Technical College
School of Healthcare
Surgical Technology Department
During Faculty Development Day, I hosted the What’s in a Name? Understanding and Respecting Preferred Names and Gender Pronouns training. I am thrilled when I hear that individual are actively seeking ways to support, encourage and respect others. I recently received a great example of demonstrating cultural sensitivity, intercultural responsiveness from Deborah Malkin.
I walked into class and introduced myself “Hello my name is Deborah Malkin and I go by the pronouns she, her, hers.” I am going to apologize for not doing this earlier, but I learned a lot in a recent meeting, and it opened my mind. I am “old school” but that is not an excuse for how to properly address individuals. I also apologize because I have a tendency to say, “Okay guys come down” and I should address it as “Okay you all can come down now.”
The students were very receptive, and it led to some great conversations. The students then proceeded to ask what we should call our mannequin since it is universal. So, I told them it was a “they” and we need to give it a name to fit that pronoun. They came up with Sam.
Congratulations, Deborah for being a Diversity Campus Champion!
