Wake Forest Athletics Celebrates ACC Unity Week
10/18/2023 9:14:00 AM | General, Les Johns
This year’s ACC Unity Week focuses on civic engagement and how student-athletes, coaches and staff can make a difference in the Winston-Salem community and beyond.
Wake Forest Athletics will be featured Wednesday as part of ACC Unity Week, showcasing the league's continued commitment to diversity, inclusion, social justice and racial equity.
This is the fourth year in which the ACC has celebrated Unity Week as an initiative of the conference's Committee for Racial and Social Justice (CORE - Champions of Racial Equity) along with its 15 member institutions. There will be Unity Weeks during the Fall, Winter and Spring, with Virginia Tech, Pitt, Louisville and North Carolina joining Wake Forest this week in the celebration.
"The ACC has made a significant commitment to promoting initiatives related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and civic engagement," said Arin Dunn, Wake Forest senior associate athletic director for student-athlete development. "The conference hosts Unity Weeks in the Fall, Winter and Spring, providing the ACC with an opportunity to showcase the various campus initiatives aimed at advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and community engagement."
The ACC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) chose "Civic Engagement" as their focus for Unity Week in the 2023-24 academic year, looking to help encourage involvement and engagement leading up to the 2024 elections.
"We are placing a strong emphasis on voting initiatives and providing voter education for student-athletes," Dunn said. "Additionally, we're exploring how campuses can actively engage with and contribute to their local communities in this regard."
Dunn is particularly enthusiastic about the partnership with – and engagement of – the Wake Forest Office of Civic and Community Engagement in this initiative.
"That's created more opportunities for education in voter education and civic engagement," he said. "[Wake Forest assistant director of advocacy and social justice education] Deb Marke is who we've worked with to provide information on civic engagement — understanding the process, the importance of being active and helping others be active in their community. We're excited to host Deb and all of our student-athletes will be participating."
"Our student-athletes have a tremendous platform from which to speak, so it's important to help them understand how to do that and why it's important. It's also important to do it responsibly and do it the right way. We want to make sure they know how to use it in a positive, productive and encouraging way."
There will be a moment of silence before each athletic contest across the ACC during Unity Week, which runs Oct. 14-22, with coverage on the ACC Network and the conference's social media channels focusing on Wake Forest.
"Another important aspect is spotlighting the community-oriented efforts of our student-athletes across the entire athletic department," Dunn said. "We aim to put their community service efforts in the spotlight. Our department has consistently ranked in the top 25 for community service, and specific teams, such as our men's soccer program, have achieved top-five national rankings in this regard.
Dunn mentioned important initiatives like Hit The Bricks, Project Pumpkin, Project D.E.S.K., Santa's Helper, the Skip Prosser Reading Challenge and Deacs in the Classroom as some of the initiatives that have made a huge impact in the community.
"There's an abundance of noteworthy achievements to select from, enabling us to emphasize the outstanding contributions our student-athletes and coaches have made in the community," Dunn said. "This positively reflects upon Wake Forest as an institution and resonates with our Pro Humanitate spirit. Our student-athletes take immense pride in the collective efforts we undertake here at Wake Forest."
ACC Unity Statement
"We, the ACC, are committed to seeing each other as equals and treating each other with respect and dignity at all times; recognizing that our differences don't divide us, but they make us stronger."
This is the fourth year in which the ACC has celebrated Unity Week as an initiative of the conference's Committee for Racial and Social Justice (CORE - Champions of Racial Equity) along with its 15 member institutions. There will be Unity Weeks during the Fall, Winter and Spring, with Virginia Tech, Pitt, Louisville and North Carolina joining Wake Forest this week in the celebration.
"The ACC has made a significant commitment to promoting initiatives related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and civic engagement," said Arin Dunn, Wake Forest senior associate athletic director for student-athlete development. "The conference hosts Unity Weeks in the Fall, Winter and Spring, providing the ACC with an opportunity to showcase the various campus initiatives aimed at advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and community engagement."
The ACC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) chose "Civic Engagement" as their focus for Unity Week in the 2023-24 academic year, looking to help encourage involvement and engagement leading up to the 2024 elections.
"We are placing a strong emphasis on voting initiatives and providing voter education for student-athletes," Dunn said. "Additionally, we're exploring how campuses can actively engage with and contribute to their local communities in this regard."
Dunn is particularly enthusiastic about the partnership with – and engagement of – the Wake Forest Office of Civic and Community Engagement in this initiative.
"That's created more opportunities for education in voter education and civic engagement," he said. "[Wake Forest assistant director of advocacy and social justice education] Deb Marke is who we've worked with to provide information on civic engagement — understanding the process, the importance of being active and helping others be active in their community. We're excited to host Deb and all of our student-athletes will be participating."
"Our student-athletes have a tremendous platform from which to speak, so it's important to help them understand how to do that and why it's important. It's also important to do it responsibly and do it the right way. We want to make sure they know how to use it in a positive, productive and encouraging way."
There will be a moment of silence before each athletic contest across the ACC during Unity Week, which runs Oct. 14-22, with coverage on the ACC Network and the conference's social media channels focusing on Wake Forest.
"Another important aspect is spotlighting the community-oriented efforts of our student-athletes across the entire athletic department," Dunn said. "We aim to put their community service efforts in the spotlight. Our department has consistently ranked in the top 25 for community service, and specific teams, such as our men's soccer program, have achieved top-five national rankings in this regard.
Dunn mentioned important initiatives like Hit The Bricks, Project Pumpkin, Project D.E.S.K., Santa's Helper, the Skip Prosser Reading Challenge and Deacs in the Classroom as some of the initiatives that have made a huge impact in the community.
"There's an abundance of noteworthy achievements to select from, enabling us to emphasize the outstanding contributions our student-athletes and coaches have made in the community," Dunn said. "This positively reflects upon Wake Forest as an institution and resonates with our Pro Humanitate spirit. Our student-athletes take immense pride in the collective efforts we undertake here at Wake Forest."
ACC Unity Statement
"We, the ACC, are committed to seeing each other as equals and treating each other with respect and dignity at all times; recognizing that our differences don't divide us, but they make us stronger."
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