Students relax on the main quad near the Illini Union at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The 2022-2023 recipients of the Broadening Inclusion Grants were announced by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. Six projects were funded for the 2022 to 2023 period.
The purpose of the grant is to develop programs and initiatives that broaden and strengthen Illinois’ community and diversity of experiences. It builds collaborative, interdisciplinary, and inclusive experiences across diverse groups to foster a climate of inclusion that creates transformative change across campus.
The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is committed to supporting sustainable efforts and co-curricular practices that foster respect and inclusion. OVCDEI invites students, staff, and faculty to apply for the Broadening Inclusion Grant. This grant is designed to encourage members of our campus community to think broadly about innovative ways to engage across disciplines and perspectives to create a more inclusive and just society.
The grant funds research from across campus including the Colleges of Education, Media, ACES, and Fine & Applied Arts. Some projects help students connect across national and cultural differences to create a sense of understanding and belonging. Other topics focus on Environmental Justice, stopping anti-Asian racism, and helping first-generation students transition to college. Another project will host disability-focused events including dance and theater events, art displays, and adaptive sports.
Lead: Ricky Price, Department of Special Education, College of Education
Collaborators: Special Education Graduate Student Association (SEGSA), The Autism Program (TAP), College of Fine and Applied Arts, Applied Health Sciences Department of Kinesiology
The Welcome Mercadito – $5,000
Lead: Stephanie Peréz, Institute of Communications Research, College of Media
Collaborators: La Casa Cultural Latina
Stop Asian Hate – $5,000
Lead: Sang Lee, Asian American Cultural Center, Student Affairs
Collaborators: International Education, Department of Asian American Studies, LAS Global Studies, and the Counseling Center API Roots team
The Environmental Justice Outreach and Research Initiative – $2,583
Lead: Shannon Anderson, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, College of ACES
Collaborators: College of ACES, Applied Research Institute, Indoor Climate Research and Training, Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment
Tastes of Cultures – $5,000
Lead: Yun Shi, International Education, Student Affairs
Collaborators: International Student and Scholar Services, University Housing, McKinley Health Center, Illini Union, Asian American Cultural Center
The Emerging Women Leaders group at their annual meeting.
Nominations are now open for the Emerging Women Leaders Forum. The group provides leadership development for early career professional women at Illinois who aspire to become organizational leaders. The women are nominated to participate in this 9-month program by senior administrators.
Women from across campus are encouraged to nominate others to participate in this program. The deadline for nominations is August 8.
“The Emerging Women Leaders Program is a great way to provide networking opportunities across campus,” said Medra Roberts-Southerland assistant director for diversity initiatives. “This group of women is remarkable and allows our campus to grow with more women strengthened as leaders.”
The focus of this program is to equip participants with leadership skills and strategies that will positively impact their departments and the communities in which they live and serve.
Meetings are designed to help women identify and reinforce their strengths while developing proactive strategies and behaviors to make a greater impact within their organizations, their personal networks, and the communities in which they live and serve. Topics will focus on core professional concepts and personal competencies.
Accessible workplaces provide opportunities for employees to be successful. Sometimes, this means providing assistive technology like screen reader software or anti-fatigue floor mats. And the new AccessLab@Illinois allows employees to test out these items with the help of experts.
The goal of the lab is to raise awareness about the importance of ergonomics in the workplace for avoiding injury and body fatigue and to provide innovative, and proactive accessibility services to employees across campus. All employees including faculty, staff, student employees, and extra help employees can access the lab.
“We are working to increase accessibility across campus to ensure individuals have access to ergonomic equipment that can assist them in their workspaces especially if they have underlying health needs,” said ADA Coordinator Allison Kushner.
The AccessLab provides people with support as they pursue the accommodations process, she said. It can also help them find the appropriate devices easier and with the help of a specialist. Individuals may also request to check out the equipment that they are interested in for use in their office space on campus on a short-term basis.
“By meeting with Accessibility Specialists, employees can find the right tools to be successful,” Kushner said. “By using the ergonomic equipment at the AccessLab, the employee who has an underlying medical condition can think about items that may assist them now and in the future possibly preventing additional damage and pain.”
A certified ergonomist is also available to answer questions regarding the proper fit and use of equipment during scheduled one-on-one consultations.
Devices available for testing:
Several types of ergonomic chairs
Several ergonomic mice, both left and right-handed
Wrist rests for both mouse and keyboard
Keyboard trays
A variety of ergonomic keyboards
Automated sit to stand desks
Footrests
Anti-fatigue floor mats
Several types of headsets, including noise-canceling
Blue light blocking screen protectors of various sizes
Digital recorders
Alternative lighting desk lamps
Laptop risers
Document holders
The Access lab is available for employees who are interested in pursuing an accommodation or those currently engaged in the accommodation process as well as anyone interested in learning more about ergonomic assistive devices that may be helpful to plan for office equipment upgrades to create a more accessible workplace environment.
Employees can contact the Accessibility and Accommodations Division by emailing accessibility@illinois.edu to schedule an appointment at the Access Lab located in the Office for Access & Equity suite at 614 E. Daniel St. 3rd Floor.
As part of its campus efforts, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is working with University of Illinois Extension to diversify its Master Naturalist program.
Extension’s Master Naturalist program provides science-based training to volunteers to help them become active environmental stewards in their community. Currently, the vast majority of the program’s volunteers indicate their race as white and there are limited service projects that specifically engage with communities of color.
Started by Professor Joy O’Keefe in the Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Sciences, the Diversify Master Naturalist Project is taking steps to make the program more inclusive by identifying and removing barriers for participants and addressing racial inequity in its training and programs.
Ross Wantland, director of curriculum development and education with the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, worked with the Diversify Master Naturalist Project to focus on communities of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), groups that have been excluded from outdoor spaces.
Due to systemic racism practices, such as exclusionary housing, BIPOC communities are more likely to be impacted by pollution and climate change. However, they cannot advocate for change if they are not included in conservation efforts.
“We’ve had the chance to explore from the ground up what structural racism is and what coordinators can do with this knowledge at the county level,” Wantland said.
Illinois State Scholars staff past and present came together to celebrate the first group of graduates. Seniors from left to right: Queen Reese, Arelis Campbell, Priscilla Vargas and Casandra Vences.
Queen Reese had a big decision to make. She went over the information again and again but couldn’t decide. She was struggling to choose between a predominately white institution, a PWI, or historically black colleges and universities or HBCU.
“I was worried about going to a school where everyone didn’t look like me and didn’t have the same experiences,” Reese said. “It made me want to go to school with the rest of the kids who look like me.”
In the summer of 2018, 24 students arrived on campus a few weeks before school started for the Illinois Scholars Program, ISP. Now, a short four years later, the first cohort of students is graduating.
Reese is one of them. She is graduating with a bachelor’s degree in African American Studies and Sociology. She said that when she decided to come to Illinois, she joined ISP and felt at home.
“Everybody clicked so fast,” she said. “And it already felt like a family.”
The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion hosted the Illinois Scholars Program Senior Celebration Saturday to congratulate Reese and the other graduating seniors.
“The Illinois Scholars Program is a great investment in exceptional students from across the state of Illinois,” said Executive Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity Gioconda Guerra Pérez. “We are so proud of the first group of students for successfully completing their education at Illinois.”
The program allows us to support a diverse group of students and help prepare them to pursue their personal and professional goals and dreams, Dr. Guerra said.
“We are so proud of what they have accomplished at Illinois and what they will continue to do after graduation,” she said.
The ISP graduating seniors include:
Arelis Janissa Campbell, BA in Political Science
Maddie Horbach, BS in Economics, Minor in Global Studies
Sharon Laby, BA in Communication
Elie Masanka, BS in Statistics, minors in Computer Science and Computational Science & Engineering
Queen Reese, BA in African American Studies and Sociology
Hannah Schum, BS in Elementary Education with ESL Endorsement
Casandra Vences, BS in Political Science with a minor in Criminology, Law and Society
Designed to serve residents of the state of Illinois from historically underserved populations and low-sending counties, the Illinois Scholars Program helps to guide new undergraduate students’ transition to the University of Illinois. The Illinois Scholars Program (ISP) aims to combine opportunity and access, experiential learning, and support to position students for academic success and personal growth throughout their time at Illinois.
“They have worked so hard to get here, and it has been exciting to be part of their journey.,” said Ross Wantland, Director of Curriculum Development and Education with the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. “I cannot wait to see what’s next for each of them.”
Staff past and present were able to celebrate with the graduating seniors.
“Dr. Desiree McMillion – the very first coordinator for ISP – has been a mentor and role model for so many of our students since day one. I was so glad she was able to come join us and say a few words about our graduates,” Wantland said.
The Illinois Scholars Program began in 2018. The Program begins with a four-week intensive summer bridge experience for incoming freshmen, but ISP continues to provide support and community for Illinois Scholars during their undergraduate years. During the summer experience, Illinois Scholars are matched with an ISP Mentor, receive personalized math and writing instruction, and build a strong relationship to peers and campus to support them during their first year and beyond to help them meet the rigorous challenges of university life.
Some of the students shared reflections from their time on campus. One big area of focus was the support they received from the ISP staff throughout their four years. Staff supported the students through academic challenges as well as how to be successful in day-to-day life.
Arelis Campbell, senior in political science, said then ISP Director Dr. Desiree McMillion helped her make the adjustment to college life and its challenges.
“She had my back and I was nervous coming in but we had her she told us she had our back and there is nothing to worry about,” Campbell said. “It made me feel so welcome and involved from the get-go.”
The students said the program allowed them to get out of their comfort zones and try new things.
“Don’t quit on yourself,” she said. “Don’t be scared I promise it is worth it.”
Some experiences the students learned were how to read a syllabus, how to conduct research, and find appropriate sources. They also learned about campus resources like McKinley Health Center and the cultural houses.
“It was interesting to meet other people like me,” Senior in communications Sharon Laby said. “The most meaningful thing is having a community on campus it can be hard to find people to connect with.”
The students faced the added challenge of the COVID-19 Pandemic which began halfway through their sophomore year.
“Having to go virtual my sophomore year it was a big change I had just got on campus, so I just got used to going to my classes,” Laby said. “When we made that transition online, I had to learn how to be a college student again.”
Laby said ISP and the people she met helped make the transition easier and contributed to her success.
“I wouldn’t have gotten this far without all of the support and the help having a community definitely makes things easier and comfortable,” she said.
Overall, college is a learning process, Reese said, and ISP gave her the tools to be successful.
“They saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself,” Reese said.
“The statistics were not in my favor for graduating in four years, but I can do whatever I want if I stay determined,” Reese said. “We made it to the finish line.”
The Illinois Scholars Program is sponsored by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in partnership with the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, the Division of General Studies, and the Merit Program for Emerging Scholars. The Illinois Scholars Program is supported by generous donations from graduates of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The Larine Y. Cowan Make a Difference Award is open for nominations until May 25. The awards celebrate the achievements of faculty, academic professionals and civic service employees who made significant contributions in creating and sustaining an inclusive living, learning and working community at Illinois.
There are four categories of awards. The Advocacy for LGBTQ Affairs, Excellence in Access and Accommodations, Leadership in Diversity and the Teaching and Mentoring in Diversity.
Named in honor of the past Assistant Chancellor and Director of what is now the Office for Access & Equity, the Larine Y. Cowan Awards were created to reflect the commitment to human rights advocacy, social justice, and diversity that defined her leadership for nearly 20 years at Illinois.
Nominations may be submitted by any member of the University community. For specific information regarding each category, please see the nomination form.
The Cowan Awards are presented each year during the annual Celebration of Diversity hosted by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
The Illinois Distinguished Postdoctoral Research Associates: Upper left to right: Bronte Charette, Stewart M. Coles, and Kimberly C. Ransom. Lower left to right: Kayla Nguyen, Gonzalo Campillo-Alvarado, and Víctor H. Cervantes.
The Illinois Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowship Symposium will highlight the diverse research achievements of this year’s fellows. The symposium will celebrate their accomplishments and features presentations of their path-breaking research.
The symposium will include short presentations from the postdoctoral research associates. It will take place at 614 E. Daniel St. on the third floor on April 19 at 10 a.m until 12:30 p.m. Box lunches and refreshments will be provided. Metered street parking is available. To learn more and register to attend by April 11, please visit go.illinois.edu/DRIVEsymposium.
The presentations will showcase the ingenuity and discovery of the associates, said Jamelle Sharpe, Chair of the Diversity Realized at Illinois through Visioning Excellence (DRIVE) Committee.
“This is an incredibly impressive group of emerging scholars working in a variety of academic disciplines,” Sharpe said. “What they share during the Symposium reflects their individual ingenuity as well as the breadth of intellectual discovery that defines the U of I community.”
The postdoctoral research associates are individuals from underrepresented groups in all fields of study and women in STEM who demonstrate significant academic potential. Promising candidates for campus faculty positions may be nominated for the Illinois Distinguished Postdoctoral and Visiting Scholar Program.
“Our postdocs have been incredibly successful in securing tenure-stream faculty positions, especially here at Illinois,” Sharpe said.
They have also developed invaluable networks of mentors and colleagues that will continue to nourish their careers long after completing the program, Sharpe said, but they are not the only beneficiaries.
“Diverse faculties have been shown to improve student learning, departmental climate, and scholarly productivity,” Sharpe said. “And for almost a decade, the DRIVE postdoc has significantly contributed to the campus’ diversification efforts. It shows Illinois’ commitment to excellence, and it’s something every member of our community can be proud of.”
Gonzalo Campillo-Alvarado is working in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from The University of Iowa. His current research in the group of Professor Ying Diao focuses on the understanding of dynamic properties in single crystals of organic semiconductors aiming to design the next-generation multifunctional electronics. His talk is titled “Crystal Chemistry of Flexible Electronics.”
Bronte Charette is part of the Department of Chemistry. Her Ph.D. is in Chemistry from the University of California, Irvine. Her current research in the group of Prof. Lisa Olshansky focuses on synthesizing switchable transition metal complexes and measuring the thermodynamic and kinetic parameters dictating their reactivities for renewable energy conversion strategies. Her talk is titled “Conformationally Dynamic Copper Complexes for Solar Fuel Technologies.”
Víctor H. Cervantes is part of the Department of Psychology. He received his Ph.D. in Mathematical and Computational Cognitive Science from Purdue University. His research focuses on the mathematical development of a probabilistic theory of contextuality, and mathematics and statistics applications to psychological modeling and educational assessment. His talk is titled “Models of Unforced Choice.”
Stewart M. Coles is part of the Department of Communication. His Ph.D. is in Communications and Media from the University of Michigan. His research examines how people develop their understanding of social issues related to identity. More specifically, he studies the way media depictions of social issues and marginalized groups evoke prejudice and stereotypes, shape and activate identity, and influence public opinion and political behavior. His talk is titled “Evaluating the Political Relevance of Media Content: Conceptualization and Consequences.”
Kayla Nguyen is part of the Department of Material Sciences and Engineering. Her Ph.D. is in Chemistry and Chemical Biology from Cornell University. Kayla now focuses her time developing new electron microscopy techniques with an emphasis on imaging the smallest unit of magnetism – the electron spin. Although she is first a scientist, Kayla is extremely passionate about building more pathways for girls and young women in the STEM fields. Her talk is titled “New Direct Electron Imaging Techniques for Quantum Materials.”
Kimberly C. Ransom is part of the Department of Education Policy, Organization & Leadership. She received her Ph.D. in Educational Studies from the University of Michigan. Her research examines the oral histories and material objects of Black children who once attended segregated schools in the Deep South during the Jim Crow Era (1940-1969). As a public scholar and artist, Kimberly also uses her historical research to create public exhibits related to African American childhood in and around schools. Her talk is titled “Pieces of Me: Insider/Outsider Status in History of Education Research.”
The Illinois Distinguished Postdoctoral and Visiting Scholar Program is administered by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, the Office for Access & Equity, and the Diversity Realized at Illinois through Visioning Excellence (DRIVE) recruitment and retention committee.
If you will need disability-related accommodations in order to participate, please email Holly Clingan at access@illinois.edu. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet your access needs.
Updated April 7, 2022 – For unforeseen circumstances, the Natalie Diaz poetry reading scheduled for tonight is canceled. If it becomes possible to reschedule the event, we will share additional information when it is available.
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Pulitzer-Prize Winning Poet Natalie Diaz will be sharing her work during a virtual event with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign community.
The poetry reading will be virtual and is free and open to students, faculty, staff, and the public at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 7.
Diaz received the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. In March 2020, Diaz’s second book Postcolonial Love Poem was published by Graywolf Press. Her first poetry collection is titled When My Brother Was an Aztec and was published by Copper Canyon Press.
Diaz is Mojave and is an enrolled member of the Gila River Indian Tribe. She received the Princeton Holmes National Poetry Prize and served as a 2018 MacArthur Fellow, a Lannan Literary Fellow, and a Native Arts Council Foundation Artist Fellow.
The event is sponsored by the Humanities Research Institute and the Program in American Indian Studies. It is co-sponsored by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
To request disability-related accommodations for this event, please email Lydia Allen at allen7@illinois.edu. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet your access needs.
More information about the speaker
Diaz was born and raised in the Fort Mojave Indian Village in Needles, California, on the banks of the Colorado River. She is Mojave and an enrolled member of the Gila River Indian Tribe.
She is a member of the Board of Trustees for the United States Artists, where she is an alumna of the Ford Fellowship. Diaz is Director of the Center for Imagination in the Borderlands and is the Maxine and Jonathan Marshall Chair in Modern and Contemporary Poetry at Arizona State University.
As part of the 2021-2022 Symptoms of Crisis lecture series, Professor Lerone A. Martin will speak on his groundbreaking new history of the Federal Bureau of Investigations called “The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover: How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism.” The event is sponsored by the Humanities Research Institute and cosponsored by the Department of Religion.
The “Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover” is a groundbreaking new history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Martin, an award-winning historian, presents the never told story of how J. Edgar Hoover’s partnership with white evangelicals and Catholics led to the political rise of white Christian nationalism. The book features newly declassified never-seen FBI documents obtained through a years long Freedom of Information Act Lawsuit.
Martin is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies and the Martin Luther King, Jr., Centennial Chair and Director of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University
The lecture is March 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Levis Faculty Center Third Floor located at 919 W. Illinois St., Urbana, IL 61801. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, please visit hri.illinois.edu.
Symptoms of Crisis events are a series of speakers that align with the Humanities Research Institute’s 2021–22 fellowship theme. This theme was born out of humanist sensibilities about underlying conditions and the urgency of examining them whenever and wherever they appear. Many aspects of our programming in 2021-2022 tracked the work that humanists are doing to grapple with critical questions of short and long duration – and to challenge conventional notions of crisis itself in the process. See the upcoming speakers here.
To request disability-related accommodations for this event, contact info-hri@illinois.edu.
Women & Gender in Global Perspectives and the Humanities Research Institute present the International Women’s Day event “12 Women Who Changed the World: Untold Stories.” Associate Vice Chancellor for Native Affairs Jacki Thompson Rand is a featured speaker at the event along with 11 other presenters.
This annual event brings together faculty, staff, students, and community members to recognize people who have made a difference in academia. Each speaker will have five minutes to tell the story of a woman in their discipline who changed the field in important ways.
Other Speakers include:
Andreas C. Cangellaris, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost
Carol Ammons, Illinois State Representative
James Anderson, College of Education
Ana Barros, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Dawn Blackman, Randolph St. Community Garden
Latrelle Bright, Department of Theatre
Enoma Egiebor, UIUC Student Body President
Kat Fuenty, Asian American Studies
Patty Jones, Beckman Institute
C. Kemal Nance, Department of Dance, African American Studies Department
Angharad N. Valdivia, Department of Latina/Latino Studies
The event is March 8 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Levis Faculty Center on the third floor located on 919 W. Illinois St., Urbana, IL 61801.
The event is free and open to the public in person or by live stream, which can be accessed here. It is co-sponsored by the Women’s Resources Center and the Department of Gender and Women’s Studies.
