August brings with it a lot of interesting DEI events and observances. We have many Tippie events coming up, including the Tippie BEFORE party on Friday August 19th at 4:30 PM and the Tippie OnIowa! open house welcoming event, a little earlier that same day. Please consider stopping by for a few minutes on Friday, August 19th in the Howe (South) Galleria, starting at 4:00 PM to meet our incoming Class of 2026!
We also start this year’s Tippie Webinar Series with one on Experimental Economics, with Professor David Cooper, on August 24th at 12:00 PM.
There are many UI and community events coming up this month, including the opening celebration of the Stanley Museum of Art. Please see details below for all these and other events and monthly observances.
Tippie Events
Tippie OnIowa!– Friday, August 19th at 4:00 PM in Howe Galleria, PBB
As a part of the On Iowa! program, Tippie is hosting an academic open house for students to explore the building and mingle with current students, staff, and faculty. The event is held in the Howe (South) Galleria in PBB and it is open-house format, so please consider stopping by for a few minutes and welcoming our incoming Class of 2026!
Tippie BEFORE Party– Friday, August 19th at 4:30 PM at the Graduate Hotel
Please join fellow Tippie faculty and staff to kick off the start of a new academic year, on Friday, August 19th from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM. The event is held in the Graduate Food Hall at the Graduate Hotel, downtown Iowa City.
Tippie Webinar Series – Wednesday, August 24th at 12:00 PM
Experimental Economics - How Understanding Humans Helps Us Understand Economics
For a long time, Economics modeled people as being hyper-rational individuals who never made mistakes and never gave in to emotions. Over the past few decades, insights from psychology and experimental economics have overturned this orthodoxy and changed how economists think about many issues. Join David Cooper, Rollins Professor of Economics and Departmental Executive Officer at the Tippie College of Business, for this engaging presentation which will focus in on the following: (1) Are spikes in housing and securities markets driven by rational forces, irrational exuberance, or some combination of both? (2) Why coordination is so important for organizations and how leaders help organizations overcome coordination failure. Click to register.
UI and Community Events
OnIowa! Program – Saturday, August 13th – Sunday, August 21st
Volunteers are needed Aug. 13 – Aug. 21 for the On Iowa! program. On Iowa! supports new students as they transition to life on campus and become more familiar with university resources, expectations, and people within our Hawkeye family. This campus tradition is a success due to the time and energy of over 600 volunteers. Volunteering provides opportunities to interact with new students, as well as meet and work with colleagues from across campus. Volunteers can sign up now on the On Iowa! website.
Stanley Museum of Art Opening Celebration – Friday, August 26th at 3:00 PM
Staff of the Stanley Museum of Art are hard at work preparing for the Aug. 26 dedication and public opening. The Collections team continues to move artworks into the building and install them in the galleries. The Learning & Engagement team is wrapping up training for the volunteer docent corps and planning for the opening.
Please mark your calendars and join us for the official dedication and ribbon-cutting at 3 p.m. Aug. 26, followed by tours of the building and galleries, free entertainment and activities in the museum and Gibson Square Park. The celebration will continue through the weekend.
50th Anniversary of the Iowa City Farmers Market Celebration – August 27th
Celebrate 50 years of local produce and arts, fresh foods, and community at the Iowa City Farmers Market! Anniversary activities will take place from 7:30 a.m. to noon. on Saturday, Aug. 27 at the Iowa City Farmers Market, located in the Chauncey Swan Parking Ramp (415 E. Washington St.).
This momentous celebration will include market goody giveaways from local vendors, craft activities, a market history display, children’s activities, and live music. Children’s activity stations will be set up from 9 a.m. to noon in Chauncey Swan park. To stay updated, follow the Iowa City Farmers Market Instagram and Facebook pages or visit the webpage, icgov.org/FarmersMarket.
DEI Resources and Announcements
Cultivating Inclusive Communities Training Pilot Program
“Cultivating Inclusive Communities,” is a new online, voluntary, DEI simulation-based professional development program that will be available for faculty and staff this fall. Using Kognito’s learning methodology, game design, and simulation sciences, the program will enhance conversational skills in a practice-based scenario. These communication strategies will improve confidence and preparedness to have conversations across differences while supporting faculty and staff’s role in cultivating inclusive communities.
The Iowa Edge Program
Iowa Edge is an exciting program for selected African American, Alaskan Native, American Indian, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Latina/o/x, first-generation, and LGBTQ+ college students transitioning to the University of Iowa. There will be 150 participants in Iowa Edge this year. The 4-day program will be from Aug. 14-17 with the closing banquet on Aug. 17, starting at 5 p.m. in Hancher Auditorium. Edge will be piloting a Day 5 program this year where participants will be invited to have mentor-mentee meetings with their Peer Leader for the entirety of their first year. This will also include specialized programming to support students.
August Events and Observances
August is National Civility Month
National Civility Month was founded to help the world remember to treat others with kindness, empathy, and respect. The Latin root of civility originated in 509 B.C. with the Romans. Their social and political structure became more decentralized, and democracy took root in the then-powerhouses, Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece. As people began to demand and receive more rights, they started devising words to describe their new republic. The term first meant ‘civis’ or ‘citizen,’ which referred to men with property. Over time, the word evolved to ‘civitas,’ a.k.a. the “rights and duties of citizenship,” and then to ‘civilitas,’ for the “art and science of citizenship.”
August is International Peace Month
August is International Peace Month and a time to reflect on the First World War. On August 16, 1926, TIME Magazine wrote: “At Rheims, martyred memorial city of World War destruction, 4,000 pacifists from 30 countries assembled last week for the Fifth International Democratic Peace Conference. Nine hundred of the delegates were young Germans, representing almost every German city. At the first session, the present month of August 1926, was proclaimed “international peace month,” the delegates voting to encamp in tents upon the onetime World War battlefields of France through Aug. 29, ‘in order to pursue an intensive study of international peace work.'”
August is Black Business Month
August is National Black Business Month, set to recognize the Black-owned businesses across the country. Black business owners account for about 10 percent of U.S. businesses and about 30 percent of all minority-owned businesses. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, that amounts to approximately two million companies owned by African Americans.
Ashura – August 7th – 8th
Ashura is a holy day for Muslims all over the world. Ashura, which means "tenth" in Arabic, corresponds with the 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic lunar calendar. For Shia Muslims, who comprise roughly 15 percent of the world's Muslim population, Ashura is the most solemn and significant date on the calendar, a day to mourn and remember the martyrdom of Hussain, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, in 680 C.E.
For Sunni Muslims, who represent the majority of Muslims worldwide, Ashura is a New Year's celebration that also commemorates miraculous events from the Quran (and the Hebrew Bible), such as Moses parting the Red Sea and Noah landing the ark on dry land.
International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples – August 9th
On 23 December 1994, the United Nations General Assembly decided that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples shall be observed on 9 August every year. The date marks the day of the first meeting, in 1982, of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations. Indigenous peoples are inheritors and practitioners of unique cultures and ways of relating to people and the environment. They have retained social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live. Despite their cultural differences, indigenous peoples from around the world share common problems related to the protection of their rights as distinct peoples.
Raksha Bandhan – August 11th
Raksha Bandhan is a Hindu festival which is celebrated in India and Nepal to symbolize the love between a brother and a sister. The occasion of Raksha Bandhan is celebrated on the full moon day of the Hindu luni-solar calendar in the month of Shravana which typically falls in the August month of Gregorian calendar. As per the Sanskrit terminology, the festival symbolizes "the tie or the knot of protection" where "Raksha" stands for protection and "Bandhan" signifies the verb “to tie”.
Hungry Ghost Festival – August 12th
The Hungry Ghost Festival, also known as the Zhongyuan Festival in Taoism and Yulanpen Festival in Buddhism, is a traditional Taoist and Buddhist festival held in certain East Asian countries. According to the Chinese calendar, the Ghost Festival falls on the 15th night of the seventh month and it is one of the traditional festivals that worships ancestors.
International Youth Day – August 12th
International Youth Day is commemorated every year on 12 August, bringing youth issues to the attention of the international community and celebrating the potential of youth as partners in today’s global society. In 1965, in resolution 2037 (XX), the UN General Assembly endorsed the Declaration on the Promotion among Youth of the Ideals of Peace, Mutual Respect and Understanding between Peoples. From 1965 to 1975, both the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council emphasized three basic themes in the field of youth: participation, development and peace. The need for an international policy on youth was emphasized as well.
International Lefthanders Day – August 13th
In a world dominated by right-handers, International Lefthanders Day celebrates the differences and distinctiveness of left handed individuals and raises awareness on the issues faced by them in their daily lives. The day was first observed by the founder of Lefthanders International, Inc. — Dean R. Campbell, in 1976. and has been celebrated every year since. Approximately 10% of the population are left-handed. Scientists do not know why a person develops left-handedness. But it’s more likely a child will be left-handed if one parent is as well.
Feast of the Assumption – August 15th
This Christian feast day is also known simply as “The Assumption.” This is a holy day that marks the Virgin Mary’s bodily ascent into heaven at the end of her life. Assumption celebrations are accompanied by festivals, colorful street processions, fireworks, and pageantry. There is also a longstanding tradition of blessing the summer harvest on this day.
Krishna Janmashtami – August 18th- 19th
Janmashtami is a Hindu festival, celebrating the birth (janma) of the god Krishna on the eight (ashtami) day of the dark fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada. The number eight has another significance in the Krishna legend in that he is the eighth child of his mother, Devaki. Lord Krishna is the eighth reincarnation of Lord Vishnu who gave the vital message of the Bhagwat Gita - the guiding principles for every Hindu. People celebrate by fasting, singing hymns, visiting temples, preparing feasts, and praying together.
Never Give Up Day – August 18th
Never Give Up Day was created for the hero in all of us. This day was created to encourage ourselves and others to never give up when the going gets tough, and to overcome challenges that life throws at us.
World Humanitarian Day – August 19th
In 2009, the United Nations General Assembly formalized this day as World Humanitarian Day (WHD), in memory of the 19 August 2003 bomb attack on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq, killing 22 people, including the chief humanitarian in Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello.
Each year, WHD focuses on a theme, bringing together partners from across the humanitarian system to advocate for the survival, well-being and dignity of people affected by crises, and for the safety and security of aid workers.
National Senior Citizens Day – August 21st
National Senior Citizens Day recognizes seniors who have spent their lives contributing to society and have impacted everyone’s lives for the better. Improved healthcare has changed demographics and increased productivity of older citizens, allowing them to be more active than ever before. With more opportunities available as well, many senior citizens now begin second careers and are an example for younger generations.
International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition – August 23rd
In Saint Domingue, today the Republic of Haiti, the night of 22 to 23 August 1791 saw the beginning of the uprising that would play a crucial role in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade. It is against this background that the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is commemorated on 23 August each year.
Women’s Equality Day – August 26th
Women’s Equality Day, proclaimed by Congress in 1973 and celebrated every August 26th, commemorates the passage of women’s suffrage in the U.S. and reminds us of the hurdles overcome by the heroic women who faced violence and discrimination to propel the women’s movement forward.
International Day of the Disappeared – August 30th
August 30 is the International Day of the Disappeared. Enforced disappearances are horrific crimes occurring when a government or its agents detain someone and then deny all knowledge of their whereabouts or fate. Once largely used by military dictatorships, they now occur in every region of the world and in a wide variety of contexts. Enforced disappearances are used to spread terror in society, often during periods of armed conflict or repression.
Ganesh Chaturthi – August 31st
Ganesh Chaturthi, also called Vinayaka Chaturthi, is a 10-day Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of the elephant-headed deity Ganesha, the god of prosperity, wisdom and new beginnings. It is one of the most widely celebrated festival as Ganesh is one of the most popular deities in the Hindu tradition.