Acknowledgements

The idea for Untold Stories began as a simple seed—planted years ago, nurtured slowly, and finally taking root over the past couple of years. It grew, evolved, stalled, withered, and then came back to life. To say this has been an emotional journey is an understatement. In a time when Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion practices are met with divisive political and social discourse, this work has felt even more urgent—and at times, incredibly difficult.

There were moments I felt defeated. But every time I thought of giving up, I saw the faces of the brave and courageous students, alumni, and colleagues who shared their stories with me. This wasn’t about collecting data from anonymous sources—it was deeply personal. Each story in this OER belongs to someone I’ve taught, worked with, or learned from. They are brave, beautiful, vulnerable. Some spoke with pride, others with pain. All spoke with hope: hope that their story might spark change, or simply help someone else feel less alone.

This work would not have been possible without the incredible community of contributors—students, alumni, educators, and colleagues—who trusted me with their lived experiences. Thank you for your courage, your honesty, and your generosity.  I will hold your stories with grace and compassion. I will share them in classrooms and beyond, to ignite the conversations we so desperately need about inclusion, belonging, and accessibility.

There are too many of you to name, but please know: every conversation, every word of hope, gratitude, and truth you offered will be remembered. You gave me strength and inspiration. Your story—and you—matter. Never doubt that.

A special acknowledgement goes to Alexandra Taylor. I first met Alexandra when they were an undergraduate student assisting with research on microaggressions and the creation of the first video for Untold Stories. Since then, we’ve collaborated on multiple projects. Alexandra has been a sounding board, emotional support, and hype person. They opened my eyes to the realities of accessibility and introduced me to the world of OER. Alexandra, your collaboration and support mean the world to me. I will continue to advocate and seek ways to make my classroom more accessible because of you.

Finally, thank you to the Ministry of Advanced Education, Association of Work Integrated Learning BC, and TLIF/OER Funding from KPU for your financial support. Your investment helped bring this vision to life. To Dr. Asma Sayed, Amanda Grey and the folks in Teaching and Learning, thank you for support for this project and being a champion for inclusion at KPU.

With gratitude,

Lindsay