BEAD WHO YOU ARE Program Request
Become Educated About Diversity
The BEAD Project is designed to celebrate and raise awareness about the multiple identities that comprise each of us and make up the University of Florida. Of course, identity is more complex than what seven beads can signify, but it is our hope that this project helps you think about- and share with others- the many things that make you YOU! So BEAD who you are, SHARE who you are, and help us to celebrate the many colors of the Gator nation.
Program details:
The BEAD activity consists of the creation of a pin with beads that represent different identities. Participants are asked to choose seven beads from nine different categories that each symbolize an identity. Examples of identity categories include faith, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and an "Ask Me" category that may represent any other identity (or identities). Participants are also asked to rank their identity beads according to the importance of each identity in their lives. Participants then share with each other some of their identities and the reasons they chose and ordered them the way they did. After this sharing period, the entire group reflects on the activity with the aid of a facilitator.
This program has received great feedback from past participants. It has really helped to open up individuals to a meaningful reflection of who they are and what aspects of their personal identity they value most and why. This introspection also helps participants to think more deeply about how they perceive others and how they themselves may be perceived. The beaded pins remind us that everyone is a whole person with a unique and complex life experience, a concept that is often lost in the one-dimensional, superficial interactions that we may have with those around us.
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