What is Cultural Competence? 

Cultural competence is the term used to describe the set of congruent attitudes, behaviors, and policies that are enacted at a personal, social, organizational, or systemic levels that can help to deal effectively in cross-cultural situations.  Because it is impossible to have an universal template for dealing with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, cultural competence is useful in helping to promote awareness of the meaning of being part of a multicultural society in which differences and commonalities have an important role in our interactions. 

Omaha has been experiencing an accelerated process of socio-cultural transformation as people from all over the world are comming to visit, work, study, or establish a permanent home and bringing their own set of values, tradiciones, beliefs, and codes of conduct.   By 2010, according to a report from the Omaha Public Schools, there were 87 different languages spoken in Nebraska. According to an study made by the University of Nebraska in Omaha, in 2006, inmigrants have become an important factor in the economy of Nebraska, representing almost 10 percent of the total labor force and near 80 percent of the labor in the meat processing industry. 

By facilitating the awareness and understanding of the new reality of the growing cultural diversity in our region, the Center for Transcultural Learning is offering to the community the program of seminars in cultural competence as a way to promote understanding, collaboration, and conflict reduction.  


What are the Objectives of the Seminars in Cultural Competence?

Based on the mission of the College of Saint Mary, the seminars of Cultural Competence are built around the philosophy of having a high regard for the dignity of each person. From here we have visualized the following objectives:

* Provide theoretical and practical frameworks of reference to promote a further awareness of the implications of being part of a multicultural environment.

* Manage with greater understanding the cultural diversity in service companies and agencies located in Omaha and surrounding communities.

* Expand frameworks of reference to mitigate ethnocentrism, racism, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of discrimination and inequalities that are present in our society.

* Reduce intergroup conflicts and promote intergroup cooperation.


Target Population

* Supervisors and leaders in contact with people from various cultural backgrounds.

* Staff of agencies responding to a culturally-diverse population.


Duration

The seminars are designed to be flexible and can be tailored to meet the needs of the organization.  The seminars can be from four to twelve hours in length, ranging from half a day to two or more days.


Content

Seminar materials are presented in modules. An organization can choose any one or a combination of
modules.  The four modules are:

* Self-assessment of the participants in order to be aware, acknowledge, and understand their own cultural or ethnic reality.

* Theoretical references on culture, cultural sensitivity, cultural awareness, and cultural competence.

* Exploration of the changing cultural landscape in the USA, Nebraska, and Omaha.

* Case studies on cultural competence and incompetence in various settings.