Demetrius Colvin is the Director of The Resource Center (RC). Demetrius supervises student employees who serve as Programming Assistants, Office Assistants, Office Managers, and Marketing Assistants at The RC.
The Resource Center seeks to support, empower, and engage students with underrepresented and marginalized identities at Wesleyan University. Through collaborating with students to promote social justice programming and activism, intersectional* education and awareness initiatives, and community advocacy, the RC strives to provide a safe** and inclusive environment for underrepresented students, faculty, staff, alumni, Middletown community members, and their allies to connect, learn, organize, and lead. Read more about The RC’s mission here.
What is your favorite part about working with Wesleyan student employees?
I appreciate how collaborative and passionate students at Wesleyan can be. At The RC, we work with one another and other students leaders in a collaborative and organic manner that allows everyone’s strengths, perspectives, and passions to be supported. Seeing students work on projects that are personally meaningful to them and that touches other students is an awesome gift to me.
Can you share any memorable experiences or achievements from supervising student employees?
There are so many great memories I have had with The RC staff, but one of my favorites each year is the implementation of the Ankhsgiving Student of Color (SOC) Celebration. The RC created the tradition of Ankhsgiving in 2018 with other student leaders to bring the entire SOC community at Wesleyan together. It is one the largest programs that The RC puts on with over 200 attendees each year. The entire RC staff works from October-March to organize it and it is always so magical to see how it comes together on the day of the event. It really is a great living testament to the power of community and collective action.
What advice would you give to students who are seeking or starting their campus employment journey?
My advice would be to take yourself seriously as an employee. For many students, working at Wesleyan will be their first legitimate job that they can get references from, which will aid them in job searching after college. No matter what the job is, you are developing a skill set and a narrative of who you are as an employee and as a person who wants to contribute to something larger than themselves. Have fun but also start building the habits of mind and behavior that will allow you to have great answers to interview questions in the future.
How do you think on-campus jobs contribute to students’ professional development and goals?
On campus jobs provide many students with their first experience with professional ethics and responsibilities. Particularly working with The RC, students gain a unique understanding of working in a collaborative environment and facilitating social justice education. These experiences can not only provide students with great work experience and references, but also can help them find/strengthen their vocational path.
How does your department’s campus jobs help you and your students impact change within the university or broader community?
The Resource Center strives to encourage and maintain a socially conscious and inclusive learning environment at Wesleyan that honors multiple perspectives and works toward equity and social justice, and The RC intern positions provides leadership to the campus community to help address these efforts. Student leaders are integral to the work of the Resource Center in actualizing its mission and goals. We offer students the opportunity to collaborate with students to promote social justice programming and activism, intersectional education and awareness initiatives, and community advocacy at Wesleyan. Our interns strive to provide a safe and inclusive environment for underrepresented students, faculty, staff, alumni, Middletown community members, and their allies to connect, learn, organize, and lead.
Shout out any programs, events, resources, or information you want students to know about your department!
Check out The RC Instagram (@wesresourcecenter) for weekly reminders of our programming!
Updated March 3, 2025.
