Good News Fridays: UAB Named One Of 16 Diversity Champions, Again Receives Excellence In Diversity Award

By Nathan Young on November 25, 2022

Welcome to the Good News Fridays segment! Each week here on Geek Alabama, Good News Fridays will feature something good, wholesome, positive, and overall something great. After a long and stressful week, we all need something good to read or watch on Fridays! Enjoy a heartwarming post below!

For the fifth consecutive year, the University of Alabama at Birmingham has been named a Diversity Champion by Insight Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education. UAB is one of only 16 colleges and universities in the nation identified as a champion. The university was one of 102 institutions to receive the 2022 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award.

“UAB is proud to be recognized again by Insight Into Diversity with both these awards,” said university President Ray Watts. “This is a testament to the outstanding efforts of our Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, as well as our entire campus, in daily promoting diversity and inclusiveness – and all of our Shared Values – as we partner for continued success in all areas of our mission.”

As a recipient of the annual HEED Award – a national honor recognizing United States colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion – UAB will be featured among other recipients in the November issue of Insight Into Diversity magazine. This is UAB’s sixth HEED award.

“Through collective intentionality, UAB strives to build a community that exemplifies our shared values and shapes a campus environment that is welcoming and inclusive,” said Paulette Patterson Dilworth, vice president of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. “Our efforts and initiatives, such as the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and advocacy certificate and the Faculty Search Guide and committee training reaffirm our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and continue to make UAB a better place to learn, live and work.”

Lenore Pearlstein, publisher of Insight Into Diversity, said: “The HEED Award process consists of a comprehensive and rigorous application that includes questions relating to the recruitment and retention of students and employees – and best practices for both – continued leadership support for diversity, and other aspects of campus diversity and inclusion.

“We take a detailed approach to reviewing each application in deciding who will be named a HEED Award recipient,” Pearlstein added. “Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being done every day across their campus.”

UAB is a member of the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD), which offers mentoring tools and support for success. The NCFDD is composed of more than 450 colleges and universities. The independent NCFDD is dedicated to supporting academics in making successful transitions throughout careers and provides monthly webinars, multiweek courses and writing challenges designed to help faculty, postdocs and graduate students thrive in the academy.

Click here for more information about the 2022 HEED Award.

This story originally appeared on the UAB News website.

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