WELCOME
Tiffini S.:
Good afternoon, and welcome to the 22nd anniversary of the University of Iowa, Diversity Catalyst Awards. I am Tiffini Stevenson Earl from the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity within the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and I have the distinct pleasure of serving as your emcee for today's event. Although we may be joining from many places, we want to take a moment to acknowledge that the University of Iowa is located on the homelands of the Chippewa, Iowa, Kickapoo, Menominee, Miami, Missouri, Omaha, Osage, Otoe, Ottawa, Ponca, Potawatomi, Sac and Fox, Dakota, Lakota, Nakoda, Three Affiliated Tribes, and Winnebago Nations. The following tribal nations, Omaha Tribe of Nebraska and Iowa, Ponca Tribes of Nebraska, Sac and Fox of the Mississippi in Iowa, and Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska Nations continue to thrive in the state of Iowa, and we continue to acknowledge them.
Tiffini S.:
As an academic institution, it is our responsibility to acknowledge the sovereignty and the traditional territories of these traditional tribal nations, and the treaties that were used to remove these tribal nations, and the histories of dispossession that have allowed for the growth of this institution since 1847. Consistent with the university's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, understanding the historical and current experiences of native peoples will help inform the work we do, collectively as a university to engage in building relationships through academic scholarship, collaborative partnerships, community service, enrollment and retention efforts, acknowledging our past, our present, and our future native nations. Thank you to the Native American Council for their effort and leadership, partnering with tribal nations across Iowa to create and share this acknowledgement of land and sovereignty. As many of you are aware, this event has historically been held in person, but has since transitioned to be in a virtual format for the time being due to the pandemic, and for the health and safety of all our participants.
Tiffini S.:
Just as an FYI, for formal viewing, please set your computer to speaker view. Today's event is also being recorded and will be posted on the website. You can visit our website for a downloadable program and to learn more about the speakers and awardees. And please notice that in the chat, there is a link to program and website there. During this event, we invite keynote speakers to give and address about current topics of diversity, equity, and inclusion, that are salient to the University of Iowa. Following words of welcome and keynote addresses, we have the honor of recognizing and celebrating those who have been presented with an award, scholarship, or honor during this academic year. We also have the Q&A function available for you to offer appreciations and kudos to the various award recipients. Please feel free to share those comments throughout the event. Now, to kick us off, it only seems fitting to welcome Dr. Liz Tovar, Executive Officer Of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and associate vice president to share an opening address.
OPENING REMARKS
Liz Tovar:
Thank you, Tiffini, for that introduction. And good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the 22nd annual Diversity Catalyst Award ceremony hosted by the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Today, we will recognize the individuals and organizations exceeding expectations to create a more inclusive and equitable campus. We will honor our Diversity Catalyst Award recipients, Diversity Catalyst Seed Grant recipients, and present the prestigious Alliant Energy Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Award. Finally, we will recognize the Building University of Iowa Leadership for Diversity, or BUILD certificate program recipients. Before we get started, I want to thank all of today's honorees. Today, we celebrate your work and dedication to making our campus a better place. Also, I want to thank the support networks of our honorees. You have been there behind the scenes to hold everyone up. And today, we are also honoring you as well. Thank you for joining us today, Dean Harriet Nembhard, and I cannot wait to hear your keynote address.
Liz Tovar:
A special thank you to Alliant Energy for your continued support of the Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Awards. And finally, I want to thank our dedicated DDEI staff for their excellent work preparing for this award show today. This event is exciting because it recognizes individuals who have continued to do the work despite the numerous obstacles they face. I can think of no better way to continue our collective journey to unity, than by celebrating so many dedicated Hawkeyes. Each of you has used your own unique interest, abilities, and passions to build a better tomorrow. A tomorrow welcoming of all differences and respecting everyone as their authentic selves. Our world continues to face heartbreak. At times, we feel grief, anger, confusion, and disappointment. In these very moments, I look for hope, not as a replacement or to appease, but to reclaim our strength and joy. Every day, I find hope in the work of the students faculty and staff of the University of Iowa. Hope is reflected in the work and people we celebrate today.
Liz Tovar:
Each of you is a change agent in the purest form. You're raising the floor and shifting the paradigm. You are a hope for a brighter future. And this work, your work, will truly transform the world. Thank you all for being here. And it is time to honor and celebrate our diversity, equity, and inclusion achievements for 2021. Let's go on with the show to celebrate the 2021 Diversity Catalyst Awards. Now, it is my pleasure to introduce today's keynote speaker, Dean Harriet Nembhard. Dean Nembhard is the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Iowa, and holds the Roy J. Carver Professorship in engineering. Her scholarship is in applied statistics and operations research, and has taken a multidisciplinary approach to improve complex systems across manufacturing and healthcare. This work converges with several other disciplines including mechanical engineering, material science engineering, engineering design, medicine, nursing, information sciences and technology, and health policy.
Liz Tovar:
It has led to many advances including forecast-based monitoring and real options models for production systems, simulation tools for assessing emergency department patient flow, and a patented implant lithography manufacturing process for small scale medical devices. Throughout her career, she has advanced a community of inclusive excellence, where diversity, equity, and inclusion opportunities create a welcoming environment that enable success for everyone. She has led and participated in events and efforts in this regard across the country, across the academy, and professional societies including NSF ADVANCE, NSF Latinx, NSF Tech Cade, National Academy of Engineering, and Society of Women Engineers. Please join me in welcoming Dean Nembhard.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
Harriet Nembhard:
Thank you so much, Dr. Tovar, for that introduction. And thank you and your team for inviting me to offer the address at this year's Diversity Catalyst Awards program. So much tremendous work has been done to catalyze diversity by those who have already been recognized in this program, and in years prior. So I am very humbled to be here offering the keynote as a new dean in this community. As I was preparing these remarks, I had one eye on the Chauvin trial. Amanda Gorman who delivered the inaugural program wrote, "The fact that we know what the verdict should be, but remain unsure of what it will be speaks volumes about our nation. We have work to do." And now, justice prevailed yesterday when the jury convicted him on all counts of murder and manslaughter in the death of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020. As we grieve for Mr. Floyd and his family, we must also reflect on the continued violence being perpetrated against people of color across our nation by police.
Harriet Nembhard:
At our university, the Reimagining Campus Safety Action Committee is finalizing its work to support all individuals' safety. And I'm personally glad that this work is moving ahead. We must all continue to respond to injustice and build community in every way that we can. Community is absolutely one of my favorite words. In both my research and administrative roles, I have used communities of practice following a 10 Wagner's Scholarship in theory. Wagner defines a community of practice as a group of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do regularly, and learn how to do it better as they interact. And so as I came into this role last summer, I convened this community of practice of black deans from across the country in various disciplines, who were also new to their roles or institutions. We spent a day sharing and exchanging ideas on anti-racism leadership at the collegiate level, and we continue to connect and learn from each other.
Harriet Nembhard:
I'd like to share the philosophy we use for centering our leadership, and how I incorporated our discussions on faculty hiring into the work I've strived to lead for us thus far at the University of Iowa. My hope is that it might be a pattern for your own work, or offer inspiration, or spark your curiosity in some way. Now, I love quotes. They are many instruction manuals for the soul. So here is some instruction on daring leadership from Audre Lorde. "When I dare to be powerful to use my voice in the service of my vision, it becomes less and less important, whether I'm afraid." Make no mistake, daring leadership is scary. You're putting yourself out there. But I remind myself that I'm not here to be right, I'm here to get it right. Next slide. The quota I'm focused on for getting it right is the College of Engineering. Our vision for the college is to produce graduates who are ethical, globally-aware citizens. To translate this vision into destiny, we need to be driving inclusive excellence in everything we do. That is the cornerstone.
Harriet Nembhard:
We commit that our students will have professors who are leaders in tackling important challenges like eliminating carcinogens in school buildings, and medical imaging algorithms that increase the accuracy of diagnosis. And so many other impactful important studies that center on engineering for better health, and engineering for the environment. We commit that ours is a community in which engineers think about the world in which engineering takes place, and how we can make that world safer, more secure, sustainable, and more just. We have to continually prepare ourselves and level up in order to fulfill these commitments. I've started with my engineering administrative council applying the same community of practice approaches with them to discuss and learn together about DEI, and how it must unfold into action for our college. A few things that we have worked on over the past year are listed here, including the DEI leadership summit that we held last month. And I'll share an example from that meeting.
Harriet Nembhard:
Each has involved many hours, many cycles of work, and each has required us to go beyond the council to engage other members of our community, the faculty, staff, and students to translate the plans into action. The ladder of inference is a model of the steps we use to make sense of situations in order to act. It helps us to think about our thinking. We first ask, what? Then, so what? Then, now what? We are very data-driven in our DEI efforts. When we get data, we have to think about what it means, what assumptions, conclusions, and beliefs drive our actions about it. To illustrate, I will share one example from our work on the diversity of our faculty. We're asking, what happened in previous searches? We're asking, so what has that meant in terms of our community? And we're asking, now what that we're about to embark on future searches? At our DEI leadership summit, we took a look at the past five years of our faculty pools. And even though the annual breakdowns are here, I'm going to focus on the totals in the last column in bold.
Harriet Nembhard:
The College of Engineering has made 18 10-year tenure track faculty hires in open searches. The first panel block shows that the total pool of applicants that met the job qualification. Within that pool, there were 39 URM applicants. The second panel block shows the number of interview requests we made. There were seven interview requests to URM candidates. The third panel block shows the number of offers we made. There were two offers made to URM candidates. So on the ladder of inference, we can challenge the assumption in our thinking that since this is a predominantly white institution, it's just so hard to attract your URM faculty, and realize that we have had chances. What did we do with those chances? Were there roadblocks of our own construction that stalled our progress? This type of reflection is critical as we go forward, and this is the work we're doing as a community of leaders. As Dean, I've asked all of the department heads to prepare five-year hiring plans. These are to be tied in our strategic plan in every way, teaching, research, DEI, and engagement.
Harriet Nembhard:
We know we need tools and frameworks like the path to distinction, which is something we are carefully working with. And we are quite cognizant of the benchmarks on faculty diversity with our peer institutions through the American Society of Engineering Education. We are working through these tools together, all very transparently, with each DEO seeing all of the other plans, and aware of what our responsibilities are as leaders of our community. As we challenge ourselves and our beliefs in creating the College of Engineering of the future, as we are creating policies and shaping decisions, I often ask some version of this question, are we gatekeeping or groundskeeping? Even as we look at faculty candidates, for example, are we asking what credentials they bring or cannot bring? Gatekeeping? Or are we asking how they can be successful in our ecosystem, and what we can do to cultivate their success once they're here? Groundskeeping. There's a key value underlying these queries, and that value is cultivating leadership for progressive faculty development through strategically tending the cultures and systems that one leads in addition to the tactical supervision of people.
Harriet Nembhard:
Rhonda Montgomery describes this as systems engaged leadership manifested as groundskeeping. I am very proud to be a fourth generation educator. Teaching is quite literally in my genes. The examples I've had in my family model, this final quote, are mini-instruction manual from Marian Wright Edelman, "Education is for improving the lives of others and leaving your community and world better than you found it." The frameworks I've shared today, a community of practice, the ladder of inference, and gatekeeping or groundskeeping, provide some of the scaffolding we need to rethink higher ed. While I shared examples around faculty, we are rethinking our approaches, and we'll be striving for inclusive excellence across our staff, student, and leadership populations as well, all with the goal of catalyzing diversity and improving our community here at the University of Iowa and beyond. I hope the future brings opportunities to partner with and exchange ideas with some of you in this critical work. Thank you.
Tiffini S.:
Great. Thank you, Dean Nembhard, for your inspiring words. In your short tenure here on campus, you have already demonstrated incredible leadership and guidance, and I have had the great pleasure of meeting with you and your team already. So I do appreciate that invitation. As a token of our appreciation, we'd like to present you with this pictorial history of the University of Iowa book.
Harriet Nembhard:
Thank you so much, Tiffini. I look forward to working with you again in the future?
ALLIANT ENERGY & ERROLL B. DAVIS JR. ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
Tiffini S.:
Absolutely. Okay. At this time, we would like to begin the presentation of awards and acknowledgments. I would like to welcome my colleague, Yashwant Prakash Vyas, assistant director of diversity resources and chair of the Alliant Energy Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Award committee to introduce our Alliant Energy Foundation representatives.
Yashwant Prakash:
Thank you, Tiffini, and greetings. Thank you for joining us today in celebrating the achievements and contributions of our awardees. We are pleased to include the Alliant Energy Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Awards in this ceremony. These annual awards acknowledge the significance of academic achievements in engineering our business administration, and leadership by underrepresented students in the state of Iowa. I want to take this opportunity to thank the Alliant Energy Foundation and our partners at the University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Iowa for their continued partnership and facilitating this award for our students. Thank you. Participating in the event today from the Alliant Energy Foundation are Julie Bauer and Leah Rodenberg. I am pleased to now turn the virtual stage over to Julie who will announce this year's recipients
Julie Bauer:
Thank you, Yashwant. Hello, everyone. My name is Julie Bauer and I'm the executive director of the Alliant Energy Foundation. It is great to be with all of you this afternoon and we appreciate the opportunity to celebrate our award winners with all of you today. Leah and I, of course, are disappointed that we can't celebrate with all of you in person, but certainly grateful that we have technology and this virtual ability for us to gather and celebrate these great students. So the awards being presented today are part of Alliant Energy's ongoing investment in the communities we are proud to serve. In 2006, the Alliant Energy Foundation established an endowed fund, the Alliant Energy Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Award. The award recognizes Erroll's remarkable 27-year career with Alliant Energy prior to his retirement. This award celebrates the importance of scholarship, leadership in campus and community organizations, and potential for future career success by underrepresented minority students in the state of Iowa.
Julie Bauer:
Throughout Erroll's career, he championed opportunity for all, and this award is one small way of seeing that goal become a reality. We know this year's recipients will add their own chapters to an ongoing story of success. It's now my pleasure to announce this year's Alliant Energy Achievement Award recipients. Our first recipient is Karen Ruby Devora Cigarroa. Karen is a first generation student studying civil engineering at Iowa State University, where she is also a community advisor for Helser Hall, peer mentor for the LEAD Learning community, Multicultural Greek Council executive member, and a member of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority. Karen's passion for engineering started in high school when she participated in the Dallas Mayor's Intern Fellows Program, and has grown since then through other internship experiences. Congratulations, Karen. Our next recipient is Maria Luz Alcala. Luz is pursuing a double major in HR management and business analytics informational systems at the University of Iowa.
Julie Bauer:
She is passionate about DE&I initiatives and serves as a diversity, equity and inclusion ambassador for the Tippie College of Business. She is president of the Multicultural Business Student Association, a mentor and coordinator for the BizEdge program, a peer leader for the Iowa Edge program, among other organizations. Luz is a proud daughter of immigrants and a first generation college student. Congratulations, Luz. Our next recipient is Hieu Nguyen. Born in Vietnam, Hieu grew up in Coralville, Iowa, for most of his life. Hieu is a Presidential Scholar at the University of Iowa studying industrial engineering. He is the acting president of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers Students Organization. While Hieu is an industrial engineer, Hieu hopes to use his technical background in a business-oriented environment, as he will be interning at Goldman Sachs this summer in their NYC headquarters. In the future, Hieu plans to transition to an international career where he can also further pursue his charity efforts in Vietnam. Congratulations, Hieu.
Julie Bauer:
Our final recipient is Linnea Dawley. Linnea is a senior at Iowa State University, studying chemical engineering and sustainability. She wants to pursue a career in the oil and gas industry, and use her education and passion for sustainability to find ways to be more sustainable in this industry. Outside of academics, Linnea holds leadership positions with the Society of Women Engineers, Engineering Leaders of Tomorrow, and the Society of International Engineers, and also works for the College of Engineering. Congratulations, Linnea. Again, congratulation. Just wanting to congratulate the four outstanding honorees and best wishes to all of you in your future.
Yashwant Prakash:
And just to echo Julie's congratulations, many congratulations to this year's recipients. And I want to again, thank members of the Alliant Energy and the Alliant Energy Foundation, our partners at all three region universities, as well as thank you to the students, their families, and their mentors for being with us today. Thank you all.
Tiffini S.:
Thank you, Yashwant, Julie, the Alliant Energy Foundation and all awardees, and for the individual who put the comment in the Q&A that they like the applause. Let's give everybody one more round of applause. And the individual also said that the applause has some giggling. So now, you have me giggling whoever you are. So I'm going to try to keep it together as we continue through the program. So to speak a little more about the Catalyst Seed Grant is my colleague, Bria Marcelo, director of diversity resources and strategic initiatives.
DIVERSITY CATALYST SEED GRANTS
Bria Marcelo:
Thanks, Tiffini. So each year, our division awards one or more Diversity Catalyst Seed Grants. These grants target creative projects that enhance and encourage the diversity, equity, and inclusion goals of the university's strategic plan. We appreciate all of the submissions and the work of the selection committee and chair. And this year, three seed grants were awarded to innovative projects on our campus. And we would like to take this time to share a little bit about the work that they are engaging in. So the first two seed grant projects were proposed by Lindsay Moen, a public services librarian in the University of Iowa Special Collections and Archives, and Jenna Silver Baustian, a processing coordinator archivist in the University Iowa Special Collection and Archives. The first project entitled Translating Collection Guides to Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), aims to translate the most popular collection guides from the University of Iowa Special Collections and University Archives into Chinese. Also known as finding aids, collection guides are the online gateway to the Special Collections' manuscript collections.
Bria Marcelo:
They inform patrons of the content of the collections to assist them with their research and scholarly needs. Currently, Special Collections' finding aids are only listed in English. And by translating these guides into Chinese, the University Special Collections and Archives aims to help bridge any language barriers that continue to occur in their department with their Chinese patrons, especially international students enrolled at the University of Iowa, therefore creating a more inclusive and welcoming environment. The second project entitled Surveying Louis Scarborough focuses on Louis Scarborough who was a black animator, character designer, and storyboard artists who was active from the late 1970s through the 1990s. His collection now at the University of Iowa Special Collections and University Archives will be inventory to prepare archival processing and descriptions of the materials. This project will result in another collection from a historically underrepresented voice accessible, available, and represented in a field where their voices are often left out.
Bria Marcelo:
So thank you so much to Lindsay and Jenna for your work. Our final Seed Grant was awarded to a project entitled Student Legal Services Immigration Consultation Program, which was proposed by Amanda Elkins, director and attorney of Student Legal Services, Rachel Howell, office manager of Student Legal Services, Alyssa Pomponio, attorney in Student Legal Services, and Jessica Malott from Malott Law, PLC. This initiative aims to provide free high quality legal advice to students on immigration issues to ease the stress and distraction these legal concerns can cause. Licensed attorneys will provide legal consultation on issues including but not limited to family-based immigration, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, DACA, and F-1 visa restrictions. Thank you, Amanda, Rachel, Alyssa, and Jessica for your work. We look forward to all the good work from the Seed Grant recipients and that's what they will do. So please join me in one more round of applause for this year's recipients.
B.U.I.L.D. CERTIFICATES
Tiffini S.:
Thank you, Bria. The BUILD initiative is an opportunity for UI faculty, staff, and graduate students to gain strategic knowledge and skills to contribute to a welcoming and inclusive environment for all. Beginning in 2015, this program has more than 3,500 individuals who have put in dedicated time and hours to learning about the experience of others, tools for building teams and resolving conflict, and supporting and eliminating behaviors and practices to inclusion. With more than 600 individuals completing the necessary requirements for the program, we would like to take a moment to highlight and appreciate individuals who have successfully received their certificate since our last Diversity Catalyst Award ceremony. And now, the applause has me raise a smile on my face as well. So once again, thank you all for your continued time and energy. Hope to see you in future sessions. And now, we turn to our final awardees of this event, our Diversity Catalyst Award recipients. To share a little bit about the initiative as well as introduce our winners, I want to welcome the founding director from the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and my boss, Jennifer Modestou, to the virtual stage.
DIVERSITY CATALYSTS AWARDS
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you, Tiffini. It's my pleasure to be here with everyone today. This award invites nominations of persons and organizations that have developed an innovative program, policy, or activity to enhance diversity within the university, and/or that have made distinctive contributions that have had a positive effect on building respect for diversity within the university community. As is the case for many years, it's always challenging for the selection committee, with so many outstanding and deserving members of our community nominated. Though not all could be selected as finalists, we strongly believe that being dominated in itself is a significant honor, highlighting the important work these individuals do in our community and the impact they've made. You can see the complete list of this year's nominees, several of whom are here today in your program. We would like to take a moment and recognize all those who have been nominated this year.
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you all for being exemplars in our community and for your ongoing efforts to make the University of Iowa a place where all feel welcome. We will now recognize the individuals who were selected as recipients of the 2021 Diversity Catalyst Award. Short biographies of each of the winners can be found in our electronic program and online. Each of our award winners will have a chance to share a few words. Our first recipient is Zahra Aalabdulrasul. Zahra was nominated by Dr. Kenneth Brown, Gabriela Rivera, and Dr. Maria Guadalupe Bruno. Zahra is a senior graduating this spring with a BBA in entrepreneurial management, as well as certificates in event planning and leadership. In her time at UI, Zahra has been central to diversity programming at the Tippie College of Business in her multiple roles as BizEdge mentee, mentor, and student program coordinator, Black in Business program assistant, and DEI ambassador.
Jennifer Modestou:
She has all shown her dedication to DEI initiatives on a campus-wide scale through job titles like center programming assistant at the Afro House, and leadership roles on Dean of Students Advisory Board and Latinx Panel Series Planning Committee. Throughout her college experience, Zahra has dedicated significant time and energy to advocating for black and brown students in building a web of connection and support. Moving forward, Zahra intends to utilize her numerous strengths to work with big brands in a social creative environment. Zahra's nominators say that when they think about her, they feel "a dizzying combination of pride, excitement, sadness for us, and hope for the future." Congratulations, Zahra.
Zahra A.:
Thank you so much. And I would like to thank as well the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, as well as the 2020/2021 Diversity Catalyst Award selection committee for this incredible honor, this prestigious award. I'm so honored and humbled. I'd also like to thank from the bottom of my heart to Gabriela Rivera, Ken Brown, Maria Bruno, for their undying support. Honestly, I couldn't have done my collegiate experience, all the work that I've done here without them. And so I'm very grateful for them and all the support that I've received to be in the community to do the work that needs to be done. I'd also like to thank every individual faculty, staff, and student on campus that is working to make change that is needed in this world, in this climate, and this campus. Continue to do the work that needs to be done. And thank you again for this honor. I'm very grateful.
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you, Zahra. Our next recipient is Monique Antoinette Galpin.
Monique A.:
Hi. Thank you. Thank you for everyone who has put this together today. And so I'm honored to receive this award alongside fellow Hawkeyes who I appreciate and value. I am thankful to have collaborated with so many talented individuals in my nearly 10 years at the university. And I am especially grateful for those who I've worked with in this past year. Year that saw heightened urgency for DEI work, the health disparities exacerbated by the pandemic in black and indigenous communities in particular, the toxic rhetoric and hate crimes against Asian communities, and the continued and relentless violence against black lives. I'm thankful for colleagues who persisted and who did this work last summer and now, even as their hearts were breaking, who were innovative in their work last fall as their work was being challenged often while navigating their own personal losses and difficulties of balancing work and home life.
Monique A.:
I want to thank my Carver College of Medicine DEI colleagues, especially Dr. Denise Martinez, for her leadership and guidance, for Dr. David Moser and his compassion and insight, Dr. Nicole Del Castillo and Janet Niebuhr for their dedication and drive. Also many thanks to my African American Council family, Shamika Harris and Shalisa Gladney in particular, everyone involved in the Summer Health Professions Education Program, whether that's faculty or staff. But in particular, those probably in past and present who have made that work so rewarding. Also my husband, Jason, and son, Ellis, and I hope for a better future that he represents. Thank you.
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you, Monique. I did want to add a few words about Monique and her background. Monique is the administrative services coordinator for the Summer Health Professions Education Program and Community Outreach in the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Carver College of Medicine. The SHPEP or SHPEP is a pipeline program for underrepresented students pursuing medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, or public health. In addition to this initiative, she co-facilitates discussions on topics such as implicit bias for hiring, and responding effectively to mistreatment of standard training. Within the DEI office, she maintains the campus and community events calendar, highlighting programming that centers marginalized voices and inclusive representation. Monique has been with the University of Iowa since 2011. She has staffed the UI Health Care Martin Luther King, Jr. Human Rights Week committee since 2012. She has also been part of the UI African American Council family since 2014, serving as past president.
Jennifer Modestou:
Additionally, Monique is a member of the Black Women's Maternal Health Collective, and Stead Family Children's Hospital Sickle Cell Symposium Planning Committee. Monique's nominators describe her as very adept at creating a safe environment for learners to ask questions, and share experiences on topics that can often be quite uncomfortable for people to discuss. Once again, congratulations, Monique. Our next recipient is Jessica Padilla Solis. Jessica was nominated by Dr. Maria Guadalupe Bruno, Linda Stewart Kroon, and Isabella Senno. Jessica was born and raised in Muscatine, Iowa. She's the daughter of Mexican immigrant parents, with still the importance of their language and culture. As a Hawkeye alum, Padilla received a BA in international studies with a Latin American emphasis, and a BA of Spanish. Also earning the critical cultural competence certificate in 2014.
Jennifer Modestou:
After discovering the field of student affairs, and through her involvement with the NASPA Undergraduate Fellowship Program, she decided to pursue graduate school at Iowa State University, where she received her master's in education and student affairs, and certificate in education for social justice in 2016. Her work at the Women's Resource and Action Center as program coordinator, involves implementing, coordinating, and assessing educational programs through critical feminist analysis. Jessica's work is grounded and driven by her dedication to social justice inequity. She works with and for the advancement of minoritized groups, women empowerment, civic engagement, advocacy, and support for students. In her free time, she likes to travel to her parents home state, Michoacan, Mexico, immerse herself in Latinx culture through dancing, and spending time with her chosen family and friends. When thinking of Jessica, nominators highlighted how her work transcends from an individual impact to a macro level. Congratulations, Jessica.
Jessica Padilla:
Hi, everyone. Thank you so much for this recognition. Is an extreme honor as being an alum, where I've been immersed as a staff in a lot of the departments that are the reason that I'm here today, like the Iowa Edge program, Upward Bound program, CDE TRIO. Just very proud of everything that I've been able to accomplish because every degree and every recognition that I have is for my parents and my family, being first generation. So [foreign language 00:50:44]. I really appreciate everything that you have done for me. All my mentors, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for all the mentors, women of color that I've been surrounded by.
Jessica Padilla:
And all I've ever wanted was to be able to be that person that those advisors, those mentors were for me when I was trying to navigate what it meant to be a first gen college student. And so thank you for everything. And what drives me is really that, quoting Audre Lorde, "I am not free." Well, any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own. So thank you for this. Is very meaningful to me, kind of full circle as being a student that used to go to this award, seeing it as an Oscars of a spring semester. So thank you so much.
Jennifer Modestou:
Congratulations, Jessica. We are going to skip ahead to our group awards and circle back to individual awards when I finish with the group awards. So next, we're recognizing organizations on campus who have not only created a needed space for their respective community members, but also developed sustainable structures and resources that benefit the university and UI community as a whole. Our first group award goes to ISAB, the International Student Advisory Board. ISAB was nominated by Shuhui Lin and Dr. Russ Ganim. The International Student Advisory Board seeks to voice international students' concerns and to advocate for international students' needs in order to improve international student experience, and create a more inclusive campus environment for international students. Nominators highlighted ISAB's work with their Get to Know Us program and mentorship programs, specifically how their work this year acknowledged the notion that our Hawkeye family extends worldwide. Congratulations, ISAB. Here to share on behalf of ISAB is Mishma Nixon.
Mishma Nixon:
Hello. So thank you for this award. And I'm here to accept the award on behalf of both the undergraduate and graduate boards. This past year has been especially tough for international students because of the pandemic, immigration laws, and anti-Asian racism. And the International Students Advisory Board, we hit the road running from last summer and the new board was selected. But it's very rewarding to have this award to see that our work has been acknowledged. A lot of our members have been all over the world this past year. I myself was not in the US for half of the year. So it has been a very interesting experience for us. But we were motivated by the international student community because it's a wonderful community that looks out for each other and driven by the motivation to give back.
Mishma Nixon:
Because every time one of us comes to the university, we are always kind of taken care of by older international students. And I also want to thank Lin, advisor. She has been our rock, but she's also been a personal mentor for most of us. I also want to thank the undergraduate and graduate student governments, who we've worked with extensively in the past year. Russ Ganim from international program and Dr. Bruno who we've also worked with extensively in the past year. I want to thank our board and also just thank all international students because it's for them that we work for, and I have found a new meaning and advocating for myself and for my fellow international students. So thank you so much.
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you, Mishma and ISAB. Our next group award recipient is the Native American Council. The Native American Council was nominated by Adam Potter and Tracy Peterson. The mission of the Native American Council, or NAC, is to promote and improve the quality of life for Native American faculty, staff, and students at the University of Iowa. The NAC's goals include addressing the diverse needs and concerns of Native Americans on campus, acting as a voice for native faculty, staff, and students, serving as a formalized liaison between native staff, faculty, students, and the University of Iowa community, and supporting the University of Iowa's effort towards recruitment and retention of native faculty, staff, and students. Nominators highlighted the NAC's work institutionalizing the UI indigenous land acknowledgement, specifically how to acknowledge native peoples as traditional stewards of this land, and share how by recognizing land, we express gratitude and appreciation to those whose territory we reside on. Congratulations, the Native American Council. To share on behalf of the NAC are Nicole Peterson and Kevin Washburn.
Kevin Washburn:
I'm going to let Nicole speak first because she had more to do with this than anybody. Nicole, please proceed.
Nicole Peterson:
Okay. Also, my name is Mishak Tuki, and I'm a citizen of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin. I am a proud University of Iowa alum, Emeritus Associate Professor of Instruction in the College of Nursing, and past president of the Native American Council. I was very honored to be asked to speak on behalf of the NAC. When I stepped into the leadership role of NAC, we noted the retention and recruitment of Native students was in dire need. And we felt that focusing our energy on rebuilding the community was the important first step. We committed ourselves to creating community and centering students around all of the initiatives we got. As my husband, Tracy Peterson, frequently emphasizes, the concept of mattering is at the heart of a strong community. We started to feel that the work we were doing mattered. As we worked on strengthening the Iowa First Nations program, we acknowledge the work that Dr. Coulter had started 31 years ago.
Nicole Peterson:
In supporting all students, we made them matter. The UI land acknowledgement not only became a passion for the NAC, but a desire to reframe our thought process of land in place. With the leadership of Tracy Peterson and Mary Bennett, this movement started taking shape. Simultaneously, leaders from the Native American Students Association were pushing for the formal recognition of Indigenous Peoples Day in the UI student government, the city council, Johnson County, and the state of Iowa. As we got closer to the current version of the land acknowledgement, we wanted our allies in the UI community to understand the purpose of acknowledging the land, and the histories of dispossession to ensure this was not simply empty words on paper. This land acknowledgement should be seen as a living document that guides our relationships with tribal nations. Receiving the Diversity Catalyst Award is symbolic of the UI support of that effort.[foreign language 00:58:54]. Thank you.
Kevin Washburn:
Thank you, Nicole, and I just want to let everybody know the Native American community at the University of Iowa is small but mighty. Our leader now is Kelly Clougher, who's here as well. There's several others. And the land acknowledgement was a labor of love that has been going on and on and it's still ongoing, but the people that worked on it most were Nicole and Tracy Peterson and really got it started, and their daughter, Adriana, was a big part of our community too. They have left us, but Nicole came back for the honoring the powwow event last weekend. And the Native American Council really appreciates Tiffini for using the land acknowledgement to open this event today. It's so meaningful to us. And I just want to mention some of the people that are involved: Carrie Schuettpelz, Shrihari Ats, Joe Coulter, who was mentioned, Jacki Rand, Mary Bennett, Isabel Flores. Those are some of the people that are part of our community, and are also so grateful here. So thank you so much. Kelly, did you want to say a word?
Kelly:
No, you both did a wonderful job. So thank you.
Kevin Washburn:
And I did put the acknowledgement in the chat. I linked it from the law school. So we're trying to amplify it. And there's Tracy. Please feel free to post it on your own places where you can and link to it from your own websites. Good to see you, Tracy. And I'm Kevin Washburn from the law school. I didn't introduce myself. Thank you so much. We are so grateful. And I'm going to get one of those applause things for my telephone so I can give it to myself when I think I deserve it. Thank you, everybody.
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you, Nicole, Kevin, and the Native American Council. And now, I'd like to circle back to our last recipient of the individual Catalyst Award, and this is Professor Yolanda D. Spears.
Yolanda Spears:
Hi.
Jennifer Modestou:
Professor Spears was nominated by Alison Oliver, Julia Kleinschmit, and Dr. Mercedes Bern-Klug. Professor Spears is a licensed master's level social worker, and a graduate of the University of Iowa School of Social Work with a bachelor and master's degree from the institution. As a clinical assistant professor at the University of Iowa, she currently teaches social work master level courses, including discrimination, oppression, and diversity. Additionally, she's the coordinator of the undergraduate critical cultural competence certificate program. Coordinating the certificate program includes teaching the foundational course, capstone course, and advising students in the certificate program.
Jennifer Modestou:
Professor Spears is passionate about teaching, mentoring, working with diverse populations, creating community partnerships, and developing programs focusing on race, social justice, cultural competence, humility, and creating spaces where marginalized voices are at the center. Nominators for Professor Spears share, "She has supported us in sustainable anti-racism work in our department, and has provided templates for effective anti-racism practices that can be adopted in other departments and higher education institutions." Congratulations, Professor Spears.
Yolanda Spears:
Thank you so much. I would like to thank the individuals who nominated me for this award. And, of course, my family and friends who support me doing this teaching work and talking about race, and oppression, and cultural humility, and diversity. They are my greatest blessings. I've pondered about accepting this award with a performative thank-you speech, but I think it's important that I express the following. We are in some stressful and dire times when it comes to the plight of our BIPOC family. The system and institution of racism and white supremacy is constantly at work. It takes no breaks. It continues to crush the souls of many of our BIPOC family, and specifically from my space, my place in the world on the margins for me as a black person, my black people.
Yolanda Spears:
My heart is heavy because we are on the other side of a historical legal determination that was hard fought for and in essence for one man, when we all know that we have seen the unjust treatment of hundreds of others that have been murdered. In the shadow of the announcement of his ruling, a black child died by the hands of police. Black death is happening in the shadow of black joy, accomplishments, justice. And every day I wake up, I wake up with clenched jaws wondering if or when the shadow will personally visit someone that I know, my grown sons, my grandchildren. Black folks didn't create the system. And I'm going to ask all of you to ponder your next move. Thank you so much. I appreciate all of you. Thank you for this award.
Jennifer Modestou:
Thank you very much, Professor Spears, for your very heartfelt message. We certainly appreciate that. And now, let's give one more round of appreciation applause. This one's for you, Tiffini, for all of the Diversity Catalyst Award recipients. Thank you.
Tiffini S.:
Great. Thank you, Jennifer. And thank you, Dr. Spears, for your very heartfelt words. As a black woman, a black mother to five, with one son, I completely, completely can understand what you have said and your words are very heartfelt and I've been very touched. So once again, congratulations again to all of today's honorees. It is truly, truly a privilege to honor you today for your outstanding contributions, and what we hope will be your continued contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion. How important it is to recognize those who have gone above and beyond in their efforts to help create a diverse and welcoming place for all. We hope each of you looks to their example, and ask how can you support their efforts, and that you consider how you can add your own efforts for change on our campus and in our community.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & CLOSING
Tiffini S.:
Given our unique structure this year, we are asking that all awardees join our photo booth Zoom link being posted in the chat, so we are able to take a couple of quick photos of you with other recipients. And once again, that is in the chat. As we wrap up our ceremony, there are several groups and individuals we would like to thank for helping make this event possible. A special word of thanks to our selection committees and chairs for their hard work in reviewing the nominations. Representatives from several offices and organizations assist us annually in making the difficult selections. And as the university's ADA coordinator, I want to give a special thank you to our captioner for helping to make this event more accessible. So thank you very much. Thank you, Julie and Alliant Energy, for your continued support of our students and their engagement with engineering and business.
Tiffini S.:
Dr. Tovar and Dean Nembhard, thank you again for joining us this afternoon and for offering your remarks. We're honored that you are with us to recognize these exceptional diversity champions. Thank you to my colleagues Dr. Erin Stresow, Bria Marcelo from the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, who led the selection and planning committees for this event. Appreciation again to all of our awardees for your continued engagement and leadership. And to the 180 plus participants who made time today to come celebrate and honor these outstanding members of our community, thank you, thank you, thank you for joining us. Stay safe and healthy, and have a wonderful evening. How about one more round of applause.