Discover how students facilitate change through tough conversations—all while eating pupusas.
The inviting smell of cheese, meat, and beans carries down the JFSB hallway as students trickle into a conference room to grab a pupusa. The Salvadorean national dish invited communion and belonging among those attending the Intersection’s opening social. Students may have initially come for the food, but they stayed for the thought-provoking conversations and sense of community.
The Intersection, a year-old club sponsored by the College of Humanities, aims to expand students’ experience at BYU by sparking meaningful dialogue and creating inclusion not just within the College but the university too. On January 26, faculty members and students gathered for the opening social to discuss diversity and belonging, assemble eyeglass frames for countries in need, and, of course, eat tasty pupusas.
Students of diverse backgrounds noted their appreciation for the club and the importance of its role on campus. “I’m a Latina engineering major, and I think this conversation is really important as an entire university. Often, I feel isolated in my major, and having this space where I can feel my community is really important to me,” says Sarah Maia (Computer Engineering ’24).
The students hope that having conversations about diversity and inclusion in the club will start a trickle effect and spark more meaningful dialogues across campus. Elementary education major Janessa Castañeda thinks that the club “gives other groups and other colleges hope to say, ‘You know what, this is possible.’ It doesn’t have to be a gigantic start. It can start with a whisper and grow to a roar.”
The club formed at the end of the fall 2021 semester but gained traction during the next winter. Each week, the club presents a discussion topic for the group to explore like “The Lord Loves Diversity.” Once a month, the Intersection also hosts a catered event.
Interested in creating lasting change at BYU? The Intersection meets each week from 11 to 12:30 in 4101 JFSB. Although the Intersection is a College of Humanities-sponsored event, the club is open to everyone both in and out of the College. For the Intersection’s meeting schedule, check out its Instagram page.