Charles retired from the Psychology faculty at U-M. A clinical psychologist, he served for 15 years as Co-Director of IGR. Since retirement, he has consulted with more than 40 universities across the nation regarding the creation of intergroup dialogue programs, based on the U-M model. He currently lives in Columbus, OH, and is an adjunct lecturer in psychology at OSU and a consultant at their Multicultural Center. Charles’ Ph.D. and M.A. are from Vanderbilt University. He also holds an M.A.
Hamida is a Student Life Senior Program Manager supporting IGR’s Student Engagement Team. She holds an MA in Higher Education with a concentration in Diversity and Social Justice in Higher Education from the University of Michigan. Hamida's first encounter with IGR was the Psych 405 course (now ALA 421) as a newly minted Resident Advisor in 2004, and this dialogue experience informed the trajectory of her professional and academic careers. Hamida's undergraduate background is in sociology, political science, and classical archaeology.
Arielle is the Student Engagement Team Program Coordinator. She supervises the two SET Program Assistants and helps to strengthen the work of SET through student, programmatic, and administrative support. She is a University of Michigan alumna and has a B.A. in Psychology. She was also highly involved with IGR throughout her undergraduate career as an Intergroup Relations Education minor and a facilitator for two IGR dialogues (Students of Color and Religion).
Mark is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the University of Michigan and a founding faculty member of the Program on Intergroup Relations. Mark is an activist scholar conducting research, teaching, consulting and organizing on issues of social justice and personal/organizational change around race and gender equity, and of the psycho-social impact of childhood cancer.
Adrienne Dessel, PhD, LMSW is a Co-Associate Director of IGR and Lecturer in the School of Social Work. She has an MSW from Simmons College and a PhD in Social Work from the University of Tennessee and worked for 20 years as a community based social worker. Adrienne provides administrative support to the program, curriculum leadership, and consultations to faculty and staff. She teaches courses on intergroup dialogue and dialogue facilitation, intergroup relations, and global conflict and coexistence.
Roger Fisher is a Co-Associate Director of IGR. In his role, Roger teaches training and practicum classes, directs IGR's partnership with the School of Social Work on the Summer Youth Dialogue Program, performs high-level administrative functions for IGR, trains K-12 professionals, consults with other Higher Education institutions on dialogue programs and works on special Student Life projects. He is an U-M alumus and has a B.S. in Psychology and also did graduate work in Psychology.
Nancy Cantor Distinguished University Professor and Emeritus Research Director
Patricia Gurin is the Nancy Cantor Distinguished University Professor Emerita of Psychology and Women’s Studies at the University of Michigan. She is a Faculty Associate of the Research Center for Group Dynamics at the Institute for Social Research and of the Center for African and Afro-American Studies. She directs the research program of the Program on Intergroup Relations, a curricular program co-sponsored by the College of LS&A and Student Life. A social psychologist, Dr.
As a Lecturer, Stephanie teaches courses for the Program and coordinates the Race & Ethnicity Engagement efforts between IGR and the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. A Chicago native, Stephanie completed her master’s degree and PhD in Educational Policy Studies – Social Foundations at the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. While there, she worked with the Dialogue Initiative, facilitating social justice education courses for first-year students and building and leading facilitator training.
As Assistant Director of IGR, Caroline manages strategic partnerships, collaborations, and liaison relationships across U-M. She provides needs assessments and consultation regarding intergroup issues and social justice education. Caroline is a social scientist whose research focuses on improving intergroup relations through social intervention and diversity education. Much of her work has been conducted in South Africa, where she lived and studied for five years.
Kelly is a faculty member and academic Co-Director of IGR. She has previously served as co-chair of the University of Michigan Understanding Race Project and chair of the U-M Diversity Council. She is currently on the steering committee and several sub-committees of the LSA Undergraduate Education Climate Committee. Her Ph.D. is in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from Arizona State University.
Alice is a lecturer with the Community Action and Social Change (CASC) undergraduate minor at the School of Social Work, The Program on Intergroup Relations, American Culture, and the Center for Global and Intercultural Studies (CGIS). Alice has worked in non-profits committed to social justice and international human rights in New York, Washington D.C., and Tel Aviv. She currently serves as a lead organizer with the Center for Jewish Nonviolence.
Xinyan is the Administrative Assistant for IGR. She provides general administrative, financial, and HR support to the program. Our office would not function without her skillful office management! Xinyan says "My favorite part of coming to work is that I enjoy the people I work with. I've learned so much about social justice issues here too."
Shana is the Assistant Director of IGR. She oversees all co-curricular programming, including CommonGround, the Student Engagement Team, and the National Intergroup Dialogue Institute, along with teaching and consulting. Shana is passionate about supporting students to explore social justice issues, deepen their understanding of social identities, develop skills in communicating across difference and while in conflict, and move from awareness to action.
Laxmi Shastry is a Student Life Program Manager, working with the CommonGround program. Laxmi completed her BA at the University of Illinois and received her MA from the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education at the University of Michigan. In her time at U-M, Laxmi worked with various units in Student Life, including Diversity and Inclusion in Housing and the Change it Up! bystander intervention program through Community Matters.
Monita serves as Assistant Dean of Students and Student Life Co-Director of IGR. Within IGR she fosters the training, development, and support of undergraduate student peer educators in skills and techniques of intergroup dialogue facilitation and on becoming a social change agents through teaching and research. She consults with higher education institutions interested in developing intergroup education on their campus. She is an alumna of Tennessee State University where she received a B.S. in Criminal Justice.
Anti’Shay is the Student Administrative Assistant at IGR. She works closely with faculty and students in her role as she supports enrollment for IGR dialogue courses and coordinates the training course application process. She also coordinates the National Intergroup Dialogue Institute that IGR hosts each year. She is an alumna of the University of Michigan, where she received a B.A in English and Anthropology.
