Supporting and celebrating a diverse student body is essential to The University of Tulsa’s mission, which is why the work done by the Office for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is so important and timely. Just this fall, TU welcomed a new face, Dionne Lambert, director of DEI education and training.
“For a woman of color who has many marginalized identities, power doesn’t always want to be spoken to by me,” Lambert said. “For so long I was a people pleaser, and then I got to a place where I realized I can’t please everybody. I learned I had to advocate and stand up for myself and for other people who felt like they couldn’t stand up for themselves.”
Lambert brings with her years of experience working in DEI, leadership training and development, and human resources. Prior to TU, she worked as a consultant for Chrysalis Consulting, with an emphasis on intercultural competency, leadership coaching, and dialogue facilitation. Her clients included the City of Tulsa Mayor’s Office of Resilience & Equity, the Potts Family Foundation, and the Tulsa City-County Health Department. Her most recent position was as a training coordinator at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa in the Center for Public Life.
“The thing that brings me the most joy is when understanding happens and people become aware of the things that they are doing that are insensitive and tone-deaf. The ‘ah-ha’ moments are the biggest joy for me,” Lambert said.
TU’s Office for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion furthers the university’s mission of educational excellence by creating an environment that values diverse life experiences, ideas, and perspectives.
“It’s all about bridging those gaps in understanding. Most of us want to relate to each other, but don’t always know how to do it,” she said. “To have an opportunity to put your guard down, set your ego aside, practice cultural humility and open yourself up to the opportunity to gain some additional perspective, makes you realize that hearing someone else won’t make you less of a person.”
Kelli McLoud-Schingen, TU’s vice president for DEI, said the university is lucky to have someone with Lambert’s unique mix of qualifications. “She is warm, funny, smart, and utterly committed to creating spaces where everyone feels like they belong. She combines a deep compassion and expertise in trauma healing as well as adult learning processes,” McLoud-Schingen said. “Outside of the university she is a vocalist, actor, director, and board member for World Stage Theatre Company. She is a great addition to the team and will prove herself to be quite the gift to TU.”