Interviews with Community Members

Questions for Kimberly Wong, PhD, Graduate Student Ombudsperson

November 15, 2022

Kim Wong is the inaugural ombudsperson for Northeastern’s graduate students. Although she is a licensed counseling psychologist, she does not provide psychological counseling or therapy as part of her role at Northeastern. Kim’s professional experience includes working with university students as a staff psychologist, facilitating group dialogues and workshops, and providing informal mediation, among other settings. Before her arrival, there had not been an ombudsperson specifically focused on grad students. After her tenure of over three years, Kim says that initially much of her time was spent getting word out to graduate students, and faculty and staff who work with students to introduce the Graduate Ombuds Office to the community. She said these introductions are still a necessary part of her job so that the global campus network can know of her role as a resource, especially in a transitional community like a university.

We recently had a conversation about her work, as is detailed below. This conversation has been edited for clarity.

CALYPSO: What interested you in this work; why did you pursue becoming an ombudsperson?

KW: As a former therapist, I learned how to support people when they were at their lowest, or struggling with a challenge they didn’t know how to navigate. It informs the work I do now, it’s something I carry with me.

This role allows me to support students in a unique way, by serving as a confidential, neutral, independent, and informal resource. I was drawn to the idea of being able to help “visitors” navigate concerns on an individual basis when they are struggling, and separately having an opportunity to provide feedback to academic leaders on broad trends affecting the larger graduate community. Although I have no power to make decisions or change policies and procedures, in some ways ombuds can serve as subtle vehicles for change.

Regarding becoming an ombudsperson, as a psychologist, I loved the work but was ready for a new challenge. [In this role] I can help visitors consider their options for change and can also potentially inform change at a systemic level. [In ombuds work] we use words like support and empower; I’m empowering visitors to identify their main concerns and goals, and supporting them in determining how they want to move forward. This is helpful for a lot of visitors to really think about because sometimes they may come in with their own assumptions about what should be most important to them, based on aspects of their social or professional identities, or other factors; But during our conversation, they may realize that what they thought was the issue they came in for may not be what’s actually bothering them. As we talk, and the layers unfold, the core issue can become more clear to them.  

CALYPSO: The Graduate Ombuds Office website describes the Northeastern Ombuds for Graduate Students as offering “confidential, impartial, and informal assistance to graduate students who have concerns related to their university experience”. What does that assistance look like? How would you describe your role to people who don’t understand how you work with graduate students?

KW: As the ombuds for graduate students I often support students as they navigate what options might be available to them, or they want to talk through different considerations before making a difficult decision. I also spend a lot of time working with visitors as they prepare for challenging conversations with faculty, staff, or fellow students. Sometimes I can support visitors or groups by facilitating these conversations. As a neutral resource, I never provide advice or take sides in any situation, instead my aim is to help visitors determine the best way forward by themselves by asking thought-provoking questions and putting a spotlight on their own insights, goals, and possible reservations. Additionally, I can help visitors with identifying helpful campus resources or information, and serve as a bridge for informal inquiries and communication.

Sometimes faculty and staff reach out about their own professional relationships with grad students, maybe there’s something impacting their work together or their ability to support a student in progressing academically. I provide consultation and coaching to faculty and staff who are hoping to informally resolve a concern involving some aspect of the graduate experience, either for an individual student, or at a larger systems level.

CALYPSO: How does your background as a Counseling Psychologist contribute to the work you do with students?

KW: Every day, my skillset as a counseling psychologist informs how I do my work; listening, and providing empathy. Being able to help students and visitors determine their options, and what they hope to get from the situation, that’s a big part. Validating and giving voice to the emotional experience; as a counseling psychologist I bring that to the role.

For visitors, what can sometimes feel challenging is the experience that maybe a piece of their humanity has been invalidated in some way by someone they interact with academically or in research. I provide a space to validate their emotional experience, which can be such an important aspect of the decision-making process.  I don’t provide therapy, but I support visitors as they figure out how to move forward and explore what options they might want to utilize.

Sometimes there can be a disconnect between a visitor’s academic and personal experiences and needs. The recent pandemic highlighted how an individual’s personal identities and responsibilities can intersect with their work identities and responsibilities. I can help visitors gain insight into what disconnects exist and what the actual problem may be that is impacting their experience at Northeastern. Sometimes what’s not visible impacts the professional relationship more than what’s visible and overt. That’s something that I take with me in my work as an ombudsperson. I might ask, in the conflict what’s not being said in the relationship with a professor or classmate?

CALYPSO: What are themes you encounter; what precipitates many of the visits?

KW: A top theme include concerns student may have around communication in an evaluative relationship: professors, faculty, research advisors, staff. Usually what precipitates them reaching out is there is some breakdown in communication, in how they work together and communicate with each other. They reach out because they want to improve the relationship.

In evaluative relationships, there [can be] a misconception that the rift is beyond repair, and that may be the case, but not always. Visitors often note how much respect they have for the relationship, which is part of what can feel so disappointing or frustrating. For some, it can almost be tougher to bring concerns up when you have a close, respectful relationship. Some common questions visitors want to explore are: “how do I bring this up to my advisor, have a conversation around what my needs are; what are potential consequences?” There are also concerns about what happens if the end result is not something the visitor would have wanted, and how to navigate next steps in those situations.

Barriers to academic and career progression are another common theme, and may be related to several concerns: things may not be progressing as they would have hoped or on the timeline they expected; a course grade is lower than expected; research is not going as smoothly as they had planned. Visitors often want to explore how to approach challenging conversations around that these barriers.

Since the pandemic I’ve also noticed a shift in the importance of cultural climate to visitors, whether it be in the classroom, research lab, or at the department, college, or University level. Students are more self-aware when it comes to identity, diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging – and they are more willing to disclose experiences of microaggressions, unfair treatment, or concerns about how they may have felt their identities were invalidated or disrespected. Often they want to know what their options are for informally or formally reporting their experience. But even if they don’t want to take any type of action (which is more often the case), I often hear that just the experience of talking about what happened and learning what the options are to address the situation can be empowering in itself.

CALYPSO: What are the challenges of your job?

Some challenges have to do with being a relatively newer resource. Just like any new resource at a large institution there’s a period of transition, the community getting to knowing about you, and what you can offer as a resource.  Building relationships takes time. It takes time for people to get to know you and  to gain their trust.

Helping people understand what the role is, that it is not to advocate or “fix” things, and that I do not have power to make decisions or institute formal change. There is sometimes a lack of understanding about the independence and neutrality of this role. Sometimes when there are calls for greater involvement, it can be challenging to educate and push back and make sure others are aware of the types of support I can – and cannot – provide.

Occasionally there’s a misconception that I have more power than I have to change a policy or to act as an advocate to create systemic change. There can be a sense of disappointment when visitors realize that that is not my role, but it doesn’t come up frequently.

CALYPSO: What are the rewards of your job?

The rewards are being able to be a part of the process as visitors work toward navigating their situation – even if I am not driving their decision making. I can support and empower visitors who want to improve their graduate experience. It is satisfying, and fulfilling when I’m able to contribute in some small way. Ombuds aren’t “fixers”, but what we can do is help visitors shed light on issues impacting their situation, clarify their goals for moving forward, and think more broadly about potential next steps. Visitors are often grateful to learn there are multiple paths they can take.

As an ombuds I have the ability to see students when they may be feeling their most vulnerable, and help them find their voice as they decide what they want to do. It’s empowering. It’s great to see, to have some small role in helping them on their journey even though I am not actively responsible for it.

CALYPSO: How has the pandemic, if at all, affected the conversations or concerns you are hearing?

Previously, visitors were more likely to separate the professional and the personal. With the pandemic, the lines were blurred and now more visitors feel it’s important to talk about what’s happening outside of Northeastern, as they now realize it can absolutely impact the academic experience.

Now, there are more conversations from visitors asking, how do I share this part of my personal identity that will impact the academic space?  I also hear more from visitors related to concerns about the people they work with. There is more of, related to colleagues, How do I have a conversation to share that I am worried about them, that I care? That’s been great to see, this intersection of personal and professional identity, and visitors asking How do we support each other?

CALYPSO: What do you want people to know about your work and/or your office?

KW: I would want to make it clear that the Graduate Ombuds Office is a resource for any graduate-level student within the global campus network, but is also available to faculty and staff across the University who want to consult about an issue involving graduate students. For faculty and staff  seeking support around employee dynamics or more general concerns, the Ombuds for faculty and Staff, Diane Levin, is also an amazing and wonderfully supportive resource. In situations where a member of the community is not sure where to go to address a certain issue these respective ombuds offices can also be a great first stop. We can often serve as a bridge to someone who might be able to provide more support, or help to facilitate productive conversation between individuals when there may be barriers in the way.

To contact Dr. Kim Wong please visit: https://graduateombuds.northeastern.edu/contact

Interview with the CIE-SJRC Director, Naomi Boase

September 8, 2022

Naomi Boase, Director for the Center for Intercultural Engagement, and the Social Justice Resource Center (CIE-SJRC), found her way into higher education after working at the border of Syria and Jordan. She started working at the Center in July 2019, hails from Grand Rapids, MI, and received her undergraduate degree from Taylor University in International Studies, specifically Middle East Studies. She subsequently received her Master of Science degree in Violence, Conflict and Development, from SOAS, University of London.

In addition to her educational experience, Naomi brought to the CIE-SJRC her knowledge and lived experience working with a multiplicity of different cultures and in conflict-laden areas in the Middle Eastern region (including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan), now known as SWANA, short for South West Asian and North African region. The description of SWANA, Naomi explained during our conversation, decentralizes the West as defining the East.  In learning about Naomi’s her work experience, it is evident the wealth of experience, knowledge and understanding of intercultural relations she brings to her role as Director of CIE-SJRC.

When I first met with Naomi to learn more about CIE-SJRC, I asked her about her interest in moving into higher education, and from there we discussed her work her at the Center, and how her experiences inform her work at Northeastern and CIE-SJRC.

Ed. Note: Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Q: When we met, I asked you about your interest in moving into higher education, one of the things you mentioned that factored into your interest in this environment, is how you saw, after 9/11 people from the Middle East were marginalized. You wanted to help people, in a learning environment, understand more about marginalization.  Could you say a little more about that?

A: My marginalization experience was that I grew up in an Evangelical Christian culture and attended a conservative Christian university where [at that time in my personal journey] I felt I couldn’t fully be myself as a queer person. Due to my own marginalization, I recognized another type of marginalization, the one that was being experienced by people from the Middle East, and it made me want to explore how whole groups of people become marginalized in society. I think having an experience of being marginalized can also allow us to access empathy for each other.

9/11 was a moment in US history that led me to a want [a deeper] understanding of what happened that day. I had studied how violence impacts all communities, and wanted to understand that more, for myself, and to offer whatever understanding I came to, to others. A community of learning, higher education, is a place I wanted to share  these experiences.

Q: In DEI work, identity matters. What would you say are some of your intersectional identities?

The first thing I would say is I’m on a journey, and we all are. Some of my social identities are I am queer and married to a woman. My coming out process was ongoing starting with a few people and eventually coming out more publicly; but given that I am cis and less visibly queer in our heteronormative culture there is always going to be someone to come out to. I also grew up with a Christian identity, today I consider myself to have Christian heritage while leaning into a queer spirituality. I’m also continually on my own ethnic journey. I am English, Irish and Japanese. My maternal grandmother is Japanese – my mother and grandmother were born in Yokohama and immigrated to the United States. I am still doing a racial exploration of being white and Asian. I’m currently learning more about what it was like for my mother and my grandmother to be Japanese in the US post WWII. And there are my southern white roots; I am asking questions about that heritage, how those lineages make up who I am and how they impact my lived experience in a multitude of ways.

Q: Tell us a bit about your work in the SWANA region.

A: My work in the region involved managing psycho-social projects. In practical terms this would be managing programming around trauma support and caregiver development. We worked with people living in Zaatari Camp long-term. I managed projects working with youth that helped them process their relationships with each other and with adults. I worked on community support, lots of sports programming (ensuring the kids had fun activities, like getting to engage with each other by playing soccer, for example) with Syrian staff. It was important that the people local to the communities led the programming, so the people doing the work were from the community while I managed donor relations and logistics.

Q: Can you think of a specific experience that had a significant impact on you during your time in the region?

A: There are several, to mention a few.

While I was in Jordan, there was a time when people from countries within the region weren’t allowed entry into the US, some of whom had secured access to enter the US then had to immediately return to the country they had just left.  – that was simultaneously heartbreaking and enraging. I saw people traumatized, and that led me to reflect on different lived experiences and the idea of identity. I interrogated my own identities – how I saw myself and how I was perceived. I learned how to have authentic, ethical relationships with people who are different from me and who have lived a very different story of historical marginalization – of violence and war.

I learned what it felt like to hold that, and recognize the courage of the people around me, and I learned to recognize how I needed to [be aware] of my identities as a woman who is mostly white, who had power in that camp. I really learned about intercultural engagement. I learned how to show up for others, as well as to be cared for by another community and be celebrated by the community, and to celebrate the Syrian community, their music and dance. It was a deeper way to understand how to connect with other humans, through soccer, dancing, and the tears, and to witness a centering of their experience in Aid work. Sometimes Aid workers or donors end up being centered rather than the humanity of those [trying to] survive.

Q: Tell me more what about you mean, what would be an example.

A: I learned how to engage and how not to engage with local populations. There were many meetings of [the Aid organization] where there was zero representation of the refugees; there were no Syrian people present. You should have multiple people at the table from the community within which you’re working. My supervisor showed me how to have authentic relationships – we did house visits and check in with people like you might in any other community neighborhood[She] learned how to center the human being in front of her rather than the system. When you get to know people and have a relationship with them you automatically center the person. The more you know a person, see them as a contributor to their community, the more you see their humanity.

The Syrians I worked with, in the words of Audre Lorde, do not lead single issue lives. My Syrian colleagues are refugees. They are also women, doctors, dentists, teachers, caregivers, daughters, children, queer etc. We gave each other the gift of witnessing each other’s lives. That is only possible with humble and authentic engagement. I’ve carried that with me.

Q: What do you enjoy most about your work at CIE? What is a challenge, or what do you hope to change or make improvements on?

A: I love student engagement – spending time with students, creating funny memories, sometimes sorrowful, intimate memories. I love one-on-ones, the connections built with staff and students are important. The life that students bring to campus is energizing.

I would like to build more restorative practices into our work, to center restoration. It is important to name mistakes made and harm caused. If someone just stays in their shame about a mistake, it will be harder to move forward, rather than seeing harm and changing the behavior. We can have communities that encourage and affirm in those process [of learning to change]. I hope people experience that at this center; we need to understand that we can change behavior and accept conflict as a means to grow and change.

We can ask: how can people make a mistake and learn, accept, and move on? Let’s notice the shame and then move past it and look at acceptance of conflict to see it as a growth opportunity. This can help us move toward love and care away from animosity and hate.

Q: What do you think that people should know or understand about CIE-SJRC, that they don’t know or understand well?

The space is for everyone. Some people are unsure if the space is for specific students, it’s for everyone who wants to build community. There are genuine moments of beautiful community building, it doesn’t have to be just one way. That’s a message we’re trying to be clearer about.  Centering the historically marginalized doesn’t mean those without that experience aren’t welcome it just means we build belonging by centering the historically marginalized. All are welcome.

Q: What is something people should know about you? What have I not asked, or talked about that you would want to say/share?

I am reading The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century, by Grace Lee Boggs, and Scott Kurashige. It is an important book that can help us embody the future we want. A quote of Ms. Boggs is, “You cannot change any society unless you take responsibility for it, unless you see yourself as belonging to it and responsible for changing it.”

I try to encourage students and staff, if you don’t know what someone is talking about, and don’t feel you have the context, listen harder. Deep listening goes a long way when it comes to having authentic relationships with people. We need to listen without judgement.

Q&A with Dr. Mona Minkara

April 27, 2022

Dr. Mona Minkara attended Wellesley College where she double majored in Chemistry and Middle Eastern Studies. While she had an interest in Middle Eastern Studies, she knew she wanted to be a scientist. Fast forward to today and Dr. Minkara is now an Assistant Professor in Northeastern’s Department of Bioengineering, and an Affiliate Faculty in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology where she heads the Computational Modeling for Bio Interface Engineering (COMBINE) Lab. Dr. Minkara uses computational modeling to study pulmonary surfactants, which are made up of lipids and proteins.  Some of these proteins are immunoproteins, and are part of the first line of defense in immunological processes, helping to fight off viruses and bacteria.  Also, pulmonary surfactants help us to expand and contract our alveoli, which helps us to breathe.

Last October Dr. Minkara completed a zero-gravity flight, for which she was selected by AstroAccess, along with 11 others with mobility, vision, and hearing disabilities. The mission of AstroAccess is to advance disability inclusion in space exploration. According to AstroAccess, “The AstroAccess Ambassadors experience weightlessness and carry out lunar gravity, Martian gravity, and zero gravity observations and experiments.” The goal of these exercises is to learn about accessibility design in spacecrafts so that “everyone, regardless of disability can live, work, and thrive in space.” Dr. Minkara talked about the opportunity to complete the flight, saying of the AstroAccess project that “takes into account our voices” – the voices of the disability community.

In addition to her participation on the AstroAccess flight, Dr. Minkara has a YouTube travel series, Planes Trains & Canes, that shows her navigating international travel in five major cities including Boston, Tokyo, and London to highlight public transportation and accessibility.

Her research and work promoting disability inclusion notwithstanding, Dr. Minkara graciously made time to answer some questions for Calypso’s inaugural Issue. (The interview has been edited and condensed for editorial clarity.)

Q: In Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work, we often talk about intersectional identities. We can accept that everyone has intersectional identities. What do you define as your identities that you want people to be aware of as you navigate in your daily life?

A: I am blind, a woman, Muslim, short, an adventurist, and a knowledge catalyst – it’s important to take in knowledge and share it. I am a storyteller. I am the child of Lebanese immigrants, bilingual. I am a huge candy lover. These are some of my surface identities. There is something deeper to us, though, that we don’t carry around on our sleeves, that are a deeper part of our souls that people don’t get around to discussing.

Q: You are a scientist that happens to be blind. I have seen conversations in social media where there are people who want to put the person first (ex., a scientist who happens to be blind), and I’ve seen where others want the opposite. I see online that you refer to yourself as a blind scientist. Tell me about the choice of that order of identification.

A: It grammatically sounds better, it’s an efficient way of describing myself, but I’m not prioritizing blindness over my science. I’m a scientist who is blind. I also would say I didn’t choose to be blind–I don’t have the choice to become sighted, but, I chose to be a scientist. I would say I am a blind female scientist, and I am proudly both.

Q: What would be three takeaways you would want to let the average person, creating [informational] materials of any kind, to know about accessibility as they put out information for consumer consumption?

• There should be captions for accessibility for videos.
• PDFs should be readable when using tools for screen reading.
• We need to not be okay with anything that’s not accessible. We should consider things fully complete when they are fully accessible.

Q: Who can you think of within the Northeastern community that should receive mention, or that is doing good work related to disability, equity and inclusion deserving of recognition?  

A: I have to say that my dean, (College of Engineering’s Dean, Dr. Gregory Abowd), has been supportive. There is something to be said about getting your leader’s support. He gets it. It makes a world of a difference for me.

Q: In an episode Planes, Trains and Canes, you have an interesting exchange with a Transport Authority employee in England that has you saying, their policy is taking away your choice, and the employee saying that there isn’t a choice so they’re not taking away your choice.

A: This got so much discussion. I don’t necessarily want to teach, I want people to follow along, come to their own conclusions. [For the series] I wanted to talk about disabilities in a positive, fun light; the topic is usually discussed in somber tones. There is a comedic element. I naturally find things funny.  The travel series provides a unique lens [on topics related to disabilities].

Q: What are you working on next, whether personally, professionally, or adventure-wise, what should we stay tuned for?

A: (Laughs) Oh, so many things.

*Note: Here are two resources where readers can learn more about access in communications and accessibility standards:

• ADA.gov – Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design (https://www.ada.gov/2010ADAstandards_index.htm), which is under the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (provides information on PDFs on screens, HTML, Print)
• There is also the World Wide Web Consortium’s, or W3C, Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) that   developed Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for web-based documents.