Engaging the Future for Choruses: Five Lenses for Exploring Cultural Competence

As the world becomes more diverse, cultural competency is increasingly understood as a strategic imperative to the success and survival of organizations, including choruses. The problem is that there is no common definition or universal standard to describe what cultural competence is. Each definition has its own approach to helping organizations become more welcoming and inclusive.

To address the rich potential and complex challenge of cultural competence, this session will:

• Introduce you to the “five lenses” approach to cultural competence
• Explore how issues of cultural competence can manifest in your own organizations through the use of a case study
• Identify your own preferred lens(s) on cultural competence, including each lens’s strengths and limitations
• Examine how the five lenses can assist you to begin moving your organization toward greater cultural competence

Presenter: Jim Bonilla, Associate Professor of Conflict Studies, Hamline University School of Business