Cynthia Taylor ’06 M.A., Ph.D.
Dean, Multiethnic Student Services
“The best part of my job is seeing a little bit of heaven here on earth as students, faculty, staff and administration come together to celebrate one another.” says Cynthia Taylor ’06 M.A., Ph.D., dean of Multiethnic Student Services. “You don’t have to totally understand everyone else’s experiences if you can engage in honoring and respecting the differences. The important thing is to commune with one another and welcome everyone to the table.”
Cynthia had just completed a counseling internship at Olivet while her son, Jasper, was a student, when she was asked to consider joining the full-time staff in Counseling and Health Services. Around the same time, Jasper submitted a proposal to form a student association, Multicultural Student Services, that would encourage students to celebrate their cultural heritages. Cynthia was eventually asked to coordinate the planning of two student events per year in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month and Black History Month. Her work over the past 10 years has led to the formalized development of Multiethnic Student Services (MSS) and the expansion of student programming on campus.
“I am so grateful to be able to pour into young adults spiritually, academically and culturally so they can develop a sense of belonging and purpose,” Cynthia says of her work. “Olivet is a microcosm of the world. What better way than to pour into students as they become change agents for a world that is so divided?”
MSS now supports six affinity groups, which include Asian, Black and Hispanic Student Christian Associations, as well as Pacific Rim, international students and Olivet’s chapter of MuKappa (an intercultural student society). Each group is led by student officers who organize weekly Bible studies, participate in worship opportunities, share meals and host other activities to help students develop a sense of home away from home as they also integrate into the greater campus community. Cynthia and her MSS team also plan five to six annual campus-wide events to recognize culturally-significant holidays, festivals and commemorative months.
“My general mindset is: people don’t know what they don’t know,” Cynthia says. “I see my work at Olivet as an opportunity to raise awareness. We live in a world that is designed by God with differences, not deficits. In MSS, we want to raise self-awareness, but also challenge students to grow in their multi- faceted identities. When I see students — and faculty and staff — flourish in who they are, that’s a win for me.”
Cynthia’s primary goal in her work is to be an advocate for encouraging constructive dialogue. She has overseen the expansion of a Civil Rights bus tour, the integration of Unity Week in partnership with the Office of Spiritual Life and increased retention of underrepresented students.
“Seeing our area become a department that’s sought after, included and valued has brought me so much joy,” Cynthia reflects. “I hope that when other people hear about Olivet, they are drawn in because they see that our campus community exemplifies the light of Jesus to the world by embracing the diversity of what God has ordained and created in our human experience.”
Cynthia, for your commitment to engaging with students so that they can establish an authentic sense of belonging that honors their background and broadens their perspectives on the future, and for your dedication to Olivet’s mission through faithful service to our Lord, we salute you as the 2025 Staff Member of the Year.
For more information about campus events, visit Olivet.edu/events.
