The University of Wisconsin’s Multicultural Student Center held a formal gala Thursday to celebrate the organization’s 35th anniversary. The event hosted a diverse crowd of 210 students, faculty and alumni for an evening of lively cultural performances and educational programming.
The MSC was founded in 1988 to address the needs of marginalized students by implementing diversity education programs and multicultural student organizations. Candace M. McDowell served as the first MSC director.
Prior to its creation, the MSC faced a challenging history characterized by strong protests against the merger of multiple cultural organizations into one center, McDowell said. A group of African-American, Native-American, Chicano, Puerto-Rican and Asian-American students formed the initial coalition of the MSC.
“This group of students came together with the intent of using one voice which proved to be what was needed to gain the respect and attention of the campus and administration,” McDowell said. “… Student activism was responsible for birthing the MSC.”
The MSC will forever remain committed to equity and inclusion for students of color, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Lori Reesor said.
The 35th anniversary also honored the MSC’s more recent accomplishments. Coming out of the pandemic, the MSC’s foot traffic has doubled, and space reservations have tripled, MSC Director Claudia Guzmán said.
“I celebrate that six years ago, there were no identity centers, and now there are four,” Guzmán said. “Everything we do is really responsive to students.”
In the future, the MSC hopes to add to its current identity centers — which currently serve Asian Pacific Islander Desi American, Black, Indigenous and Latinx students — to include a program in support for Middle Eastern and North African students, Guzmán said.
During the event, the Wisconsin Union announced the sale of limited edition mini chairs that resemble the iconic chairs on the Memorial Union Terrace. The chairs were painted black by Wisconsin Union painters and hand paint-splattered by MSC students and staff with four colors to represent each cultural identity center — yellow for the Black Cultural Center, blue for the Indigenous Student Center, teal for the Latinx Cultural Center and red for the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Student Center, according to a press release.
The Wisconsin Union intersects with the MSC in its goal to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment, public relations and communications officer at the Wisconsin Union Shauna Breneman said. A portion of the profits from the sale of mini chairs will support the MSC’s campus food insecurity efforts, Breneman said.
Partnerships are key in raising awareness of the MSC’s importance, McDowell said. The MSC was founded as a central location where cultural identity could be freely expressed and all students could connect with their community.
“The MSC exists because the campus needs culture and will continue to need culture,” McDowell said. “Students need community and a sense of belonging.”
Editor’s Note: This story was updated April 5 to reflect that Candace M. McDowell was the MSC’s first director, not the MSC’s founder.
