Several art shows and diversity programs are set for the coming weeks at Ohio University Southern in Ironton.

Kicking off on Thursday, Feb. 23 is the seventh annual Tri-State High School Juried Art Show, which will run through Thursday, March 2. Art works of Courtney Kessel will be on display from Thursday, March 16 through Thursday, April 6, followed by the Undergraduate Juried Art Show, which is set to open Thursday, April 13 through Friday, April 28.

Light refreshments will be served at 5 p.m. on all opening reception nights for the three shows.

In the diversity department, the school’s MLK Interfaith Dialogue: A Conversation on Faith and Race, is set for 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28 in the Bowman Auditorium. The event will honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as well as provide a platform for understanding and respect.

The moderator for the event is Dr. Charles Jarrett, chairperson for the OUS Council on Diversity and Inclusion as well as an associate professor of sociology. Panelists for the event include the Rev. J.D. Crockrel, assistant pastor of Christ Temple Church in Ashland, Kentucky, Dr. Deron Newman, instructor at Ohio University Southern, Morehead State University and a minister in the United Methodist Church, the Rev. Margaret Tyson, pastor of the Ironton Quinn Chapel AME Church, and the Rev. Jan Williams, retired pastor of the Ironton First Presbyterian Church.

An OUS Envision Access Conference on Supporting Students with Disabilities in the Tri-State is set for 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Friday, March 24.

For more information, contact Robert Pleasant at 740-533-4608 or pleasanr@ohio.edu.

This is the school’s first Envision Access Conference, and serves as an opportunity for members of the Tri-State to increase awareness and understanding of trends in addressing the needs of students with disabilities.

The event hopes to create networking opportunities to foster working relationships between guidance counselors, intervention specialists and higher education accessibility/disability services administrators, access and embrace the use of technology, learn the best practices related to students with disabilities and develop community connections to increase educational attainment for students with disabilities.

The keynote speaker for the event is Dr. J.W. Smith, Ohio University Scripps College of Communications.

For more information, contact Teresa McKenzie at 740-533-4622 or Robert Pleasant at 740-533-4608.

At 6 p.m. on Friday, March 31, Ohio University Southern will host the Women of Appalachia Project’s “Women’s Speak” in the Mains Rotunda of the Riffe Center. This is an evening of story, poetry and song. The event is free and open to everyone. For more information, contact Sarah Diamond Burroway at 740-533-4593 or burroway@ohio.edu.

The “I AM…” speaker series, which provides an opportunity to earn and understand each other, showcases people’s stories and experiences and aims to break down barriers that divide us.

OUS employee Noel Payne will kick off this years “I AM…” speaker series with “I Am Not Oppressed; I Am Liberated” from noon-1 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28 in the Resource Commons on the second floor of the Collins Building. The session will focus on Muslim women, who are often stereotyped as oppressed, mysterious, uneducated, followers of men, and will shed light on what hijab means, why women choose to or not to wear it, and what rights women have in Islam. She will talk about and present her journey to Islam and her decision to wear a hijab. Refreshments will be served at the event.

The speaker series is organized by the OUS Council on Diversity and Inclusion and the Resource Commons.

If you would like to share your story as part of the speaker series, contact Robert Pleasant at 740-533-4608 or pleasanr@ohio.edu.