UMD opens Unity Center, a space fostering inclusion and diversity 

The University of Maryland opened the Unity Center earlier this month as a space designed to foster diversity and create an environment centered around inclusion and belonging across communities. Located in the Cole Field House, the Unity Center is a representation of years of student advocacy and collaboration with the university.

According to the UMD Division of Student Affairs, the center was first announced in the Fall of 2021 by university president Darryl Pines as a part of an  initiative to create spaces that reflect the diverse student body, envisioned as a unified hub where individuals and communities can gather, learn, and celebrate the cultural diversity at UMD.

“The more we met with students and talked to students, the more we also got the sense that calling them individual centers or spaces was not going to be beneficial. People really wanted to talk about it as one specific, cohesive space,” said Yvette Lerma Jones, director of student affairs diversity, equity and inclusion at the student affairs division.

The new center features a multipurpose room with an accessible dual height island and kitchenette designed for communal meals, a mosaic honoring multiracial, multiethnic and adopted communities, accompanied by flexible lounge areas for general student use. 

“I would say there was a long history of students advocating for space on this campus,” Jones said, “and this was really trying to fit the need of both what student communities have expressed, what student organizations have shared and find a good place to be able to create a space that addresses all of those competing needs.”

Students were also involved in the design of the space, including choosing the colors of the rooms and the fabric of the furniture, according to Jones. Ryan Wade, a freshman chemical engineering major, said that the center is “incredibly important” to him.

“[Students] need a campus community in order to learn, in order to help each other. So I think that fostering and promoting diversity and inclusion is one of the most important parts of that,” said Wade.

Junior bioengineering student Sulayman Khan said the space is, “an ability for the students to be able to interact with one another in a place outside of the traditional academic mindset and an academic place.” 

“The Unity Center is a way for people to have that community that’s not just academic, not just a friend group. It’s a way for you to go back to your roots, your history, and be with people that share those same values,” said Khan.

Since the center’s opening Jones has given several tours of the new space. 

“There is something about being able to give people the story of where it began, the things that students shared to create the space that is the most meaningful right now,” said Jones. “Anytime any of the staff members are messaging me saying there’s people in the lounge, that is a great feeling  because it means we’re meeting the purpose of students using the space.” 

_{Image credits: Cover photo by Zain Khaliq/Al-Hikmah Staff.}