DIVERSITY²
We Should Talk
1. Do You Suspect that Micro-Aggressions are Invading Your Work-Place or Home-Community Learning Environment?
2. Are you concerned that your students or employees are not prepared to compete in an internationalized environment?
3. Is Your Organization Too Willing to Relinquish, rather than Retain its Black Students or Professionals?
4. Are the Challenges to Maintain Your Identity Holding You Back from Building Critical Allies to Moving Your Community's Growth and Development Forward?
If you answer "Yes" to any of these questions, then our workshops on,
Mastering the Inter-Racial Contexts within the worlds of works, universities, and community groups will be a guide to your success.
About DIVERSITY²
Our Philosophy is that the Journey to Success is the Responsibility of Individuals, and Public and Organizational Policy Initiatives striving together to Empower rather than to Encumber.
“It has been my absolute pleasure to live a history of ‘standing-in-the-gap’ for under-served populations too often undervalued, marginalized, or minimized by 'culturally unresponsive' patterns of practices and policies".
“I began to see early on among too many professionals, how the absence of cultural competencies impacted performance measures; moreover, the lack of interests in responding the needs of under-served individuals and their communities--whether employees, customers, or students".
C.E.O. Dr. Alvin L. Killough
About Our team
Alvin Killough
Alvin Killough is a retired Associate Tenured Professor and Distinguished Faculty from the University of Minnesota Crookston. His equity, education, and cultural work as a cultural-ecological and organizational psychologist has put him on a path of service around the region, the nation, and the world.
Dr. Killough grew up in the rural south on a family farm during the 60’s. He was accepted as an undergraduate by University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill in 1970 and graduated with a B.A. degree in International Affairs. He went on to serve in the United State Navy as an officer, later earning his M.A. in Organizational Psychology at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and Ph.D. in Psychology of the Public Interest at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He has traveled internationally to Australia, Canada, Egypt, France, Haiti, Jamaica, Kenya, South Korea, and Taiwan; and of course, across the United States.
Eryn Killough
Eryn Killough is a published author and public speaker on Ethno-centrism and the African-American in educational systems in the US. Her expertise is in re-conceptualizing social, economic and political pathologies, and organizational practices in the context of race. She was asked to join Dr. Killough in 2008 as a Translational Research Specialist given by her book chapter co-authorship “ 'I Too Matter' The Peril of Old Crossing: Ethnocentrism, and the Paradigm Clash Between White- and Native Americans". She is dual licensed in Adult Basic Education and English as a Second Language.
Dr. Killough and his team engage in opportunities to change the trajectory of lives from:
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Organizational change efforts to increase retention rates
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Family-life coaching
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West African immigrants and African Americans facing communication challenges negotiating medical conditions in treatment settings (e.g., clinical depression Ebola bereavement, breast cancer recovery, HIV,...)
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Community group development facing cultural diversity issues, to
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Major stakeholders seeking systems-change through programmatic Federal grant efforts to enhance client engagement
Core Leadership Team
Our core leadership team has a twenty-year plus successful career track record related to mental health, and lifestyle teaching, advising and coaching within a racial equity lens. These are evidenced through numerous sources indicative of “reach” to White and BIPOC youth, parents, and/or community organizations including University. Examples of illustration include:
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16 Awards received germane to coaching diversity and community engagement (n=8), to psychology (n=2), and diversity and instruction (n=6)
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32 Peer reviewed published research germane to behavioral medicine, and cross-cultural community behavior and academic engagements
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13 Peer reviewed publications by our mentorship of young under graduates, adult post baccalaureate, and post graduates germane to diversity, equity, and inclusion
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2 systems change coaching efforts to increasing and improving cross racial engagements to increase retention rates
Client list
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Duke University Medical Center Chronic Pain Management Program,
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U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration,
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U.S. Departments of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs,
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Institute of Education Sciences,
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University of Minnesota Crookston (UMC),
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MN community serving non-profit organizations such ACER (African Career Education Resources), FREC (Facilitating Racial Equity Collaborative), Progressive Individual Resources, Inc. (PIRI).
Through scholarly research, public speaking, and designing local workshops, Dr. Killough has leveraged opportunities and allies, resulting in not only an extensive array of scholarship, but an impressive array of activities and organizational accolades:
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Over 60 Public Engagements: Presentations, Posters, Exhibits, and Workshops
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30 Media Citations.
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5 External-Organizational Acknowledgements: Diversity, and Scholarly Community Engagements
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Eleven Internal-Organizational Acknowledgements: Honors, Diversity and Instruction
Selected research PUBLICATIONs,
presentations,
AND WORKSHOPS at professional meetings
Selected Publications List
Refereed Journal Articles:
1.Killough, A., Killough, E., Walker, E. Williams, O. (Fall, 2017). Examining the delicate balance of maintaining one’s blackness as a Black professional on the Predominantly White Campus. Journal of Best Practices in Health Professions Diversity: Research, Education and Policy. 10(2), 81–110. ISBN 987-0-9794409-0-8 / ISBN 0-9794409-0-4 2.Killough, A., Killough, E., Edwards, C.L. Burnett, J. (2014). Beyond America’s White Hegemony: In Response to a Rapidly Emerging Global Multi-Cultural Learning Community. International Journal of Science, Commerce, and Humanities, 2(5), 93-110. ISSN: 2053-5295 (Online) 2052-6164 (Print). 3.Killough, A., Killough, E., Hill, L.K., Edwards, C.L. (2013). Exploring the cultural context of tobacco use for prevention among ethnic groups of African descent. International Journal of Science, Commerce, and Humanities, 1(8), 121-147. ISSN: 2053-5295 (Online) 2052-6164 (Print).
Peer Reviewed Book Chapters, Peer-Reviewed Non-Refereed Journal Articles, & Published Proceedings of Conferences:
Book Chapters
1.Killough, A.L., Killough, E.G., Burnett, J., Bailey, G. (2019). The Contemporary Role of the HBCU in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Absence of On-going Historical Relevance. In C.H. Davis, A.A. Hilton, & D.L. Outten (Eds.), Underserved populations at historically Black colleges and universities: The pathway to diversity, equity, and inclusion. United Kingdom: Emerald Publishing, 43-67. 2.Killough A.L. and Killough E.G. (2017). What’s In Your Script: Getting Beyond Race to Deal with Race. Interpersonal Communication in Multiple Contexts: Representative Anecdotes. Eds. Mark Huglen. Dubuque, IA: Kendall-Hunt, 53-65. 3.Killough, A. L., & Killough, E. G. (2008). “I Too Matter” The Peril of Old Crossing: Ethnocentrism, and the Paradigm Clash Between White- and Native Americans. In David Marshall (Ed.) Treaty At Old Crossing: To Invite Enlightened Understanding, Section II, pp. 16-23. © Association of the French of the North (AFRAN), Box 101, Red Lake Falls, MN. 4.Killough, A. L., Webster, W. L., Brown, V. B., Houck, E., & Edwards, C. L. (2003). African American Violence Exposure: An Emerging Health Issue (October, 2003). In Carol Camp Yeakey and Ronald D. Henderson (Eds.) Surmounting All Odds: Education, Opportunity and Society in the New Millennium, pp. 147-173. Information Age Publishers, Greenwich, CT. ISBN 1-931576-27-0.
Published Proceedings of Conferences
1.Killough, A. L., Killough, E.G., Oni, R., Walker, E. (2018). The Struggle to Succeed and Maintain Black Identity in Predominantly White Higher Education Institutions. 2018 International Conference on Urban Education (ICUE) Biennial Meeting in Nassau, Bahamas. Nov 8 – 10, 2018. www.theicue.org 2.Killough, A. L., Edwards, C. L., Bailey, G., Swain, D. E. (January, 2004). Re-framing the Education Paradigm: Schools as a Necessary, but Insufficient Condition. Proceedings at the 2004 College Teaching and Learning Conference. Lake Buena Vista, Florida. No. 274, ISSN 1539-8757.
Selected Presentations and Workshops at Professional Meetings and Conferences
1.Killough, A. Sr., Killough, E., & Killough, A. II. (Nov. 10-11, 2023). The Unclothing of a Well Dressed Lie: Creating Learning Conversations on Race in America. The FREC (FACILITATING RACIAL EQUITY COLLABORATIVE) 15th Annual Overcoming Racism Conference November 10-11th, 2023. Metro State University, 700 E 7th St., St. Paul, MN 55106. RM SEC 115. 2.Killough, A. Sr., Killough, E., & Killough, A. II. (July 14-15, 2023). Post COVID-19 The Centrality of Your Health: What Does It Mean To Be “You” in the Cultural- Ecological Space. How Do You Matter??!! The 9thAfrican Mental Health Summit, hosted by Progressive Individual Resources, Inc., and Restoration for All Inc. Saint Paul, MN. 3.Killough, A. Sr., Killough, E., & Killough, A. II. (July 23, 2022). Exploring Resilience, Transformation & Restoration in Healing Personal and Collective Racialized Trauma: the Pervasiveness of the Trauma Journey – Linking Inception from the early European empires in Africa to today’s America. The 8th African Mental Health Summit 2022, on Friday, Saturday, July 23rd, Metropolitan State University, Founders Hall Auditorium 700 East 7th Street, Saint Paul, MN. 4.Killough, E. & Killough, A. (August 14, 2019). Real Change Takes More than Good Intentions Workshop 5 for Adult Basic Education Summer Institute, St. Cloud Civic Center, MN. August 14-16, 2019. 5.Killough, E. & Killough A. (January 21, 2019). What’s In Your Script? Why Immigrants Often Avoid Talking To Americans. Workshop 4 (1:30) for the MLK Staff Development Day, K-12, Northwest Service Cooperative, Lincoln High School, Thief River Falls, MN. RM 100. 6.Killough, E. & Killough A. (November 9, 2018). The Value of Meaning Making in K-12 to increase Academic Engagement Using Social Reconstruction Theory. 2018 International Conference on Urban Education (ICUE) Biennial Meeting in Nassau, Bahamas. Nov 8 – 10, 2018. www.theicue.org 7.Killough, A. (July 12, 2018). Keynote address: Back to the Basics-Towards a shift in the Mental Health and Well Being of Africans in the Diaspora. The 4th International African Mental Health Summit, Metropolitan State University, Saint Paul, MN. July 12 – 14. http://www.africanmhs.com. 8.Killough, A. L. & Killough, E. G. (November 4, 2017). What’s in Your Script: Why Blacks often Hate Talking to White People. Metropolitan State University, Saint Paul, Minnesota. Overcoming Racism Conference, Regional Conference. New Main L213, Saint Paul, MN. 9.Killough, A. L. & Killough, E. G. (February 23, 2016). Race and the Motivation Process- An Evidenced Based Model that Yields Results. University of Minnesota Duluth. 2016 Summit on Equity, Diversity and Multiculturalism. C Kirby Student Center, Duluth, MN. 10.Killough, A. L., Russell, W., & Killough, E. G. (November 19, 2011). Examining Your Own and Your Organization’s “Diversity Tool Kit”. Workshop Presentation: Overcoming Racism Conference 2011 Workshop. Metropolitan State University, Saint Paul, MN.