LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- The possible beginning of a new tradition intended to serve as an example for daily living and interaction will take place on Wednesday, October 7, 1998 when faculty, staff, and students unite for a celebration of intercultural community on Rider University's first Unity Day.

Unity Day will offer an opportunity for institutional self-development by broadening the multicultural perspectives of all campus members.

"What we are trying to do with Unity Day is promote community," said Don Brown, director of Rider's multicultural center. "It is a time when we are saying that the issues of community and unity are important enough for us to put a day aside and examine what we've done and what we want to do to promote unity here."

Brown and other Unity Day organizers will try to achieve that goal by looking at historical perspectives on multiculturalism, examining national issues in multicultural issues through distinguished speakers, and emphasizing the positives when discussing community relations. By doing this, the hope is to eliminate the issue of 'walking on eggshells' when people discuss race and cultural differences.

"The premise behind Unity Day is to examine what we are doing here, what is being done on other campuses, and what can we be doing better to enhance our understanding of multiculturalism on campus," said Dorothy Warner, a Rider librarian and Unity Day organizer.

Among the several Unity Day events planned are morning multicultural understanding workshops for both faculty/staff and students led by Dr. James Anderson, vice provost and dean of undergraduate studies at North Carolina State University. Highlighting the afternoon is a multimedia workshop on multiculturalism by Mark Hicks of Geroge Mason University's Institute for Educational Transformation, and a forum on race presented by Lorna Gonsalves-Pinto, director of diversity initiatives at Bowling Green State University.

In addition, several of Rider's faculty and students will lead workshops and discussion groups based on the day's theme. For a complete schedule of Unity Day events, contact Warner at (609) 896-5241.

Rider University's Lawrenceville campus is located five miles south of Princeton and three miles north of Trenton on Route 206 in Lawrence Township, NJ. The campus is one-half mile south of exit 7A of Interstate 95.