Civility is under attack, Eboné Bell told a standing-room-only audience at Bryant University’s 2025 Day of Understanding. In a world that seems to favor conflict, it can feel like there’s no choice but to give in.
However, she reminded the crowd, it doesn’t have to be that way — and the answer starts with them.
“If there’s one thing I want you to leave here today knowing, it’s that you have a lot more power than you think you have,” Bell, the former editor and founder of Tagg Magazine, an award-winning publication for LGBTQ women, shared. “You can cultivate the culture you want to see and the world you want to live in.”
Over the course of her interactive talk, Bell helped students reexamine their preconceptions, develop a framework for having respectful conversations, and find the courage to be bridgebuilders. Most importantly, she encouraged them to always approach the world, and others, with empathy.
Bell’s words resonated throughout the day and throughout Bryant’s campus. An all-day event, attended by the entire university community, Bryant’s sixth Day of Understanding provided programs, workshops, and spaces for critical dialogue to advance awareness about inclusion and wellbeing-related issues. This year’s theme, The Future of Growth: Creating Pathways that Strengthen All Communities, invited participants to consider how we can grow personally, professionally, and collectively.
More than 70 panels led by students, staff, faculty, alumni, and guests brought the Bryant community together to examine themselves, their university, and the world around them. This year’s Day of Understanding was held on Veteran’s Day and during Native American Heritage Month, which was recognized with multiple sessions recognizing the perspectives of veterans and indigenous people.
“This is a day dedicated to talking, listening, and sharing as we strengthen our community through sessions and activities that celebrate service, heritage, and belonging,” said Inge-Lise Ameer, Ph.D., vice president for student affairs/dean of students and community and belonging. “It’s a chance to talk, to listen, and to grow as we practice dialogue and deepen our relationships with one another.”
A focus on perspective
In the Janikies Auditorium, Community Director and Coordinator of Student Activities Patricia Adesanya ’23, ’24MBA led a discussion with Black student-athletes on their takeaways from the Black Student-Athlete Summit that the group attended this spring in Chicago. Students spoke about learning to lead with their authentic selves, helping others understand the experiences of Black student-athletes, and the types of resources that would be beneficial for their growth and success personally and professionally.
“Honestly, I just felt connected with mentors, peers, and leaders who are trailblazing in sports, education, and activism. These relationships are invaluable as they help fuel my ambition and help me envision a future where I thrive beyond my sport,” said panelist Amira Rainer ’25, ’26MBA, a member of the women’s softball team.
From many, one
There is no overarching “immigrant experience,” noted Professor of Marketing Srdan Zdrakovic, Ph.D., — only individual stories. In a panel focusing on transnational narratives, he and four other Bryant faculty members from all over the world shared the diverse journeys that brought them to the United States and helped them adjust to their new home.
From culture shocks to practical advice on international travel to reflections on the changing perception of the word “immigrant,” they discussed what it meant to voyage, and live, across borders.
International experience, said Professor of Management Elzotbeck Rustambekov, Ph.D., who was born in Uzbekistan and has traveled to more than fifty countries, has contributed immeasurably to both his personal and professional lives. “I have so many stories, and so many examples to share with my students,” he said.
Understanding beyond a diagnosis
There is a danger in “ignorant innocence,” stated Bryant Student Accessibility Specialist Jay Caliri, moderator of the “Access and Awareness” panel. Sometimes we may think we're doing something to help but are actually causing harm because we don’t truly understand the issue — or the person facing it.
Through a student disability dialogue, five Bryant students with non-apparent disabilities — from anxiety to dyscalculia to living with a brain mass — spoke openly about campus life, navigating classroom accessibility, self-advocacy, and identity.
The panelists reflected on their personal experiences, the challenges, and the successes, offering insight into how awareness and understanding can help build a better, more inclusive Bryant. “We're all trying our best, we're just asking you guys to help us be our best,” said Emmy Gomes ’28.
Supporting the spirit of indigenous communities
An issue that affects one of us affects all of us, Silvermoon Mars LaRose, a member of Rhode Island’s Narragansett tribe and assistant director of the Tomaquag Museum, told her audience. “We need everyone to be aware of the concerns that we have as Indigenous people if we are going to share this country. We may have different goals, but they can align.”
LaRose, who noted that Bryant is located on Nipmuc tribal land, told students they could help indigenous communities in Rhode Island by supporting initiatives like Land Back, which seeks to return ancestral lands to tribes, the Food Sovereignty movement, which brings traditional food back to indigenous communities, Water is Life, which ensures access to waterways and water resources, and programs that promote the survival of native languages.
Students were also encouraged to visit Tomaquag Museum in Exeter to learn more about the area’s rich history.
'Manning up’ is bad mental health for men
Men are four times more likely than women to die by suicide, but their mental health needs are often overlooked, according to a panel of mental health counselors led by LaTanya Monteiro, a senior intercultural counseling specialist in Bryant’s Office of Counseling Services.
“Boys are allowed to be angry or furious but not really allowed to cry, even though sometimes we all need to,” said licensed mental health counselor Brian Lalli.
The panelists agreed that ‘manning up’ should not mean grinding away at your work while swallowing your feelings — a message that resonated with Diogo Silva ’25.
“How we act as men is a big part of our culture, and I was curious about how society has built me up to be the person I am today,” he said.
Leadership requires accountability — and hugs
As a former Marine Corps officer and mountaineer, Eric Kapitulik has had several brushes with death. He used those experiences to drive home a message about personal responsibility, leadership, and teamwork, but also noted that even Marines get scared and need hugs sometimes.
Speaking in a packed Janikies auditorium, Kapitulik recounted a helicopter accident at sea that took the lives of six of his comrades. “I still get scared thinking about that moment,” said Kapitulik, who turned the trauma into a cause, raising money for the victims’ families by competing in Ironman races and summiting Mount Everest.
Leading begins with personal accountability, said Kapitulik. “The best teammates and leaders take 100 percent responsibility for everything that happens or fails to happen in our lives,” he emphasized. But we also need to support those around us.
“Hold your teammates accountable. Ensure the team accomplishes the mission. And always take care of your teammates,” he advised.
At one point during his talk, Kapitulik asked audience members — who he alternatively called ‘teammates’ and ‘warriors’ — to hug their nearest neighbor. “Leadership is a contact sport,” he explained.