diversity

The first-ever Dean James E. McLeod Freshman Writing Prize has been awarded, and the inaugural winners are Senit Kidane and Claudia Vaughan. McLeod was a longtime WUSTL leader who died in 2011. The Center for the Humanities provided funding for the contest, and any freshman in the College of Arts & Sciences could submit work for consideration. Original research papers exploring an aspect of race, gender or identity and created for a freshman course were eligible.

Multicultural Celebration Weekend, April 11-13, welcomes admitted students for a campus visit focused on diverse student life and learning opportunities. Freshman Lela Prichett shows off one of the shirts marking the weekend.

On March 26, the Campus Diversity Collaborative and Human Resources Department teamed up to offer a panel discussion in College Hall on “Diversity in Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention: Challenges and Resources.” More than 80 staff and faculty members heard from panelists who discussed their research expertise and professional experience related to diversity and inclusion.

A program to encourage and support women pursuing careers in information technology is just one of the projects that received a funding boost from this year’s Diversity and Inclusion Grants program. Among last year’s winning proposals was a summer research program for students from Meharry Medical College in Tennessee (right).

Despite evidence supporting boardroom diversity as a driver of corporate performance, “the percentage of women directors on U.S. boards stagnated some years ago and remains at or near 12 percent, with fewer than 10 percent of boards having three or more women,” says Hillary A. Sale, JD, the Walter D. Coles professor of law at Washington University School of Law. “The pressure to add women directors is, however, growing.”  Sale discusses options to grow board diversity.

The Office of the Provost at WUSTL has launched a new website, diversity.wustl.edu, as the focal point for all diversity and inclusion initiatives on campus. The site has a comprehensive list of resources and programs, and will use photographs and videos to tell stories of the university’s people and programs that support diversity on campus.

A unique summer research program is providing 11 students who attend Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn., with invaluable experience at the School of Medicine. The program offers the Meharry students the opportunity to conduct cutting-edge research with the School of Medicine’s renowned physicians and scientists.

The Advisory Committee for the Diversity and Inclusion Grants has awarded eight grants totaling nearly $174,000 to Washington University faculty and administrators for initiatives that improve the university environment for women and members of underrepresented minority groups.

Faculty and administrators are invited to submit proposals for program initiatives that strengthen and promote diversity and inclusion at Washington University. Projects aimed at improving the university environment for women and members of underrepresented minority groups can receive up to $30,000 through Washington University’s Diversity and Inclusion Grant program. The deadline for submission of 2011-12 proposals is Saturday, Nov. 5.

The Campus Diversity Collaborative (CDC), which aims to increase awareness of diversity and inclusion issues at Washington University in St. Louis, is seeking new members among faculty and staff. The CDC was founded in 2007 to make diversity and inclusion of all individuals, regardless of race, creed, religion, sexual orientation or gender, a priority.