Latest News from ODEI
At the University of Alabama at Birmingham, we affirm our shared values of diversity and inclusiveness, accountability, collaboration, integrity, and respect. We stand against xenophobia, incivility, racism, ableism and all forms of discrimination and injustice. We acknowledge the strengths and weaknesses of our shared history and actively promote social justice to challenge discrimination, and address disparities and inequities.
The news about the coronavirus (COVID-19) is evolving daily. The Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (ODEI) is committed to sharing information related to building a supportive, empathic and informed community. This is a moment for us to embrace an ethic of caring and, by our actions, reaffirm our commitment to sustaining our beloved community. What can we learn to promote systemic change, not only in a time of crisis but into the future to support inclusive excellence and a community where all feel valued and welcome every day?
We recognize the importance of creating a community where all faculty, staff, and students have a sense of belonging because they are supported and welcome. We strive to provide an excellent educational and employment experience by practicing inclusivity as we work, educate, and learn from one another. With this commitment, we all need to provide support to one another and be kind and respectful to all who are part of the UAB community. We need to especially remember that we have members of our community that may be far from home and are without the support of their family or friends. We invite all members of our community to connect with others for mutual support. While we are experiencing "social distancing," it is essential to remember that this does not mean "support distancing." Support is critical in any crisis like this.
We encourage you to visit the UAB website for regular updates. In addition to taking health precautions advised by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH), we invite you to take this moment to envision, build, and contribute to a more inclusive and resilient UAB. Many resources are circulating. The following are recommendations to help you stay kind, stay healthy and stay safe:
- Reject racism, sexism, xenophobia and all hateful or intolerant speech, both in person and online. Discourage others from engaging in such behavior.
- Address unequal access to technology, hardware and software. Ask students about their level of access to technology. Use that information to inform the technology choices for your courses. Consider offering loaner laptops or assisting with access to internet service.
- Ensure web accessibility for students with disabilities when using online learning or remote instruction.
- Be inclusive and remember that everyone has different circumstances. Continue to treat everyone with respect, both in their presence and in their absence. Do not resort or revert to unkind discussions about people, individuals or groups who may not be in your immediate circle or network.
- Advocate for students and employees who may have fewer resources. Many students rely on the housing, dining, health care and employment provided on campus. Allow for access to campus food pantries (such as UAB’s Blazer Kitchen), basic needs and health and wellness resources.
- Be patient with one another during email, text and video conversations. There can be a tendency to want immediate answers, and typically friendly ways of communicating can break down without deliberate effort to maintain kindness. Try to be as clear as possible in online conversations. Don't assume that broad, sweeping statements will be fully understood.
- Be kind and understanding regarding expectations. Relax requirements that can become impositions, such as demanding business attire for online video meetings or classes, or penalizing participants in online classes for wearing casual attire. Remember that people may be operating without resources and access to many material items and services. Keep the focus on what is most important.
- Build community through virtual coffee/tea hours with colleagues, students and faculty.
- Do not use terms such as “Chinese Virus” or other terms which cast either intentional or unintentional projections of hatred toward Asian communities, and do not allow the use of these terms by others. Refer to the virus as either “COVID-19” or “coronavirus” in both oral and written communications.
- Support the health care workers who are on the front line of this pandemic. Help ensure that they get the rest they need, can attend to personal and familial needs, and are supported as health care workers and as people. Visit the UAB Caregiver Wall of Thanks to submit a thank you note to convey your support.
- “Flatten the curve” by attending to the health-related guidelines set forth by federal and local governments.
- Remember to practice self-care! Recognize your own stress, manage yourself before managing others, and make time for your physical and emotional needs. For tips on self-care and managing stress visit uab.edu/eacc for employees.
It may take time, but we will get through this together, as a family and community.
Warmly,
Paulette Patterson Dilworth, Ph.D.
Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Additional Resources
University of Alabama at Birmingham coronavirus resources
Continuing education: how to successfully teach your kids from home
Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, UCLA
“How families around the world talk coronavirus with kids” by Public Radio Inc. (PRI)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is closely monitoring an outbreak of respiratory illness caused by COVID-19, which was first identified in China. According to the CDC, the complete clinical picture with regard to COVID-19 is not fully understood.
The risk for Alabamians remains relatively low at this time, and UAB — along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Alabama Department of Public Health — are closely monitoring the ongoing situation. COVID-19 can cause mild illness that can be overcome, but more severe cases can be life-threatening. More information about the 2019 novel coronavirus is available on the CDC website.
UAB leadership has been encouraged to make decisions based on potential risks and circumstances regarding university-sponsored domestic travel, events and visitors to campus. Decisions should be based on the relative risk of the travel or visitor(s), understanding that our top priority as an institution is the health and safety of our campus community. UAB is taking full precation, educating the campus and community on how to prepare in the event of a pandemic. As the situation evolves, the UA System and UAB leaders will continue to monitor the situation closely and provide additional or revised guidance.
For more information and updates regarding Coronavirus, visit https://www.uab.edu/news/coronavirus.
Two individuals, two groups and one student organization were honored with the President’s Diversity Champion Award Feb. 20. The annual award recognizes employees, students and organizations that have helped create a more culturally diverse, inclusive university community through their achievements.
Nominations are solicited from the UAB community for all categories, and awards are given in each of five categories for projects or activities that best reflect the implementation of unit and/or campus diversity goals.
Congratulations to the 2020 recipients:
Farah D. Lubin, Ph.D
Faculty, UAB Heersink School of Medicine
Farah D. Lubin, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Neurobiology in UAB’s Heersink School of Medicine, Associate Scientist in the Comprehensive Center for Healthy Aging, Associate Scientist in the Comprehensive Neuroscience Center and co-director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Neuroscience Roadmap Scholar (RMS) Program. The goal of the RMS program is to enhance engagement and retention of underrepresented graduate trainees in the neuroscience workforce. She is also co-Director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences Mentored Experiences in Research, Instruction, and Teaching (MERIT) Program for postdoctoral fellows. She is a past recipient of a Pathway to Independence Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH/NIMH) and the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)Award.
Dr. Lubin values mentorship and was also the recipient of the 2017 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Mentorship. Her main research focus is investigating the epigenetic basis of learning, memory and its disorders, including memory deficits associated with normal aging and neurological disorders such as epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease. She received her undergraduate degree from Alabama State University in Montgomery, Alabama and her Ph.D. in Cell/Molecular Biology and Immunology from Binghamton University in Binghamton, New York.
April Coleman, LPC, NCC
Kiera Walker, ALC, NCC
Herbert Wilkerson, ALC, JSOCC
Staff, Student Counseling Services, Division of Student Affairs
Collectively, April Coleman, Kiera Walker and Herbert Wilkerson have worked to create a safe space on UAB’s campus for black students to discuss issues around race, mental health and wellness, self-care and more. Their idea: a group focused on the Black Experience, particularly the experiences one has as a Black/African-American student on a predominantly Caucasian campus. “Hey, Sis, Hey” and “Fellas, Let’s Go There” provide an opportunity for candid, open conversation. Since its inception in the Fall of 2018, the Black Experience groups have been successful in meeting needs and connecting students who identify as Black/African-American.
Coleman earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. In her current role, she provides individual and couples counseling and coordinates and facilitates the department’s mental health outreach events and presentations across campus. April is a skilled crisis interventionist, group facilitator (The Black Experience) and QPR facilitator. She has presented at several national conferences and local workshops and has also developed and implements a campus-wide resiliency initiative program, “Blazers Bounce Back Building Resilience”.
Walker earned a B.S. in Biology and an M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. In her current role as Triage Coordinator, she manages the triage team services through oversight of the stepped care service-delivery model and initial consultations. As Assessment Coordinator, she is responsible for managing and leading the assessment of groups, outreach programs, and user evaluations, as well as assisting in the decision-making of programs and services based on data gathered through assessment measures. Kiera has presented at local, state and national conferences, and is a certified Grief Recovery Method Specialist.
Wilkerson has been working in the mental health field for more than a decade. He is passionate about working with Black students and other students of color to decrease the stigma of mental health in underrepresented communities. In his current role, he works to connect with student groups on campus to make sure that students are aware of counseling services. Prior to working at UAB, Herbert worked in the community as a therapist in residential, foster care and mental health center settings with all ages. Something he tells himself routinely is, “It’s not about me”. Meaning his role is to serve the underserved and marginalized populations while treating them with human dignity and respect.
Denise Dixon
Morgan Gordon
Chukwuemeka Ikejiani
Carissa Jones
Andrea Reed
Carl Robinson
Graduate Student, Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD), School of Health Professions
The collective work of occupational therapy (OT) graduate students Andrea Reed, Carissa Jones, Denise Dixon, Morgan Gordon, Carl Robinson and Chukwuemeka Ikejiani began in their spring semester of 2019 at UAB. They were inspired to make an impactful change within their cohort and future cohorts regarding diversity sensitivity and awareness. Their motivation to effect change was inspired by presentations regarding social injustice, biases and inequities in the healthcare field given by Dr. Carmen Capo-Lugo and Dr. Zena Trost during their “Barriers” course instructed by Dr. Sarah Dos Anjos and Dr. Gavin Jenkins. These presentations encouraged the graduate students to reflect on their individual experiences of racial bias as students at UAB and share their collective concerns. Together they felt a new conversation was necessary to promote and enhance diversity sensitivity and awareness within the occupational therapy graduate program. The idea was proposed to Dr. Sarah Dos Anjos and the OT department chair, Dr. Jenkins, to create a safe place for open dialogue between occupational therapy staff and students to discuss social injustices and biases in the OT field and within their cohort. They desired to have the discussion be a catalyst to promote and inspire individuals to look beyond their own biases and encourage being open to experiencing the unfamiliar realities and perspectives of classmates and future clients. This push resulted in the implementation of an all-day diversity training for the OT department staff and students in Summer2019. Each student was an active participant in establishing the UAB chapter of the Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD) in Fall 2019. Together they continue to advocate for diversity training that will improve cultural awareness and sensitivity, and create more diverse, equitable and inclusive students and professionals within the occupational therapy community.
Renuka Srivastava
Undergraduate Student, College of Arts & Sciences
A native of Meridian, Mississippi, Renuka Srivastava has a passion for the progression of social justice issues in the South. A senior with a double major in Political Science and International Studies, she has registered thousands of students, faculty and staff to vote, and has arranged rides to the polls from campus during every election cycle. She has shown her commitment to helping improve UAB’s campus culture towards social justice issues through her leadership roles in the Social Justice Advocacy Council, International Mentors, College Democrats, Leadership and Service Council and the Student Government Association. She regularly works with advisors and students to advocate for core policy changes at UAB to make the campus a safer space for all students.
Srivastava also advocates for inclusive policy changes internationally through Kulture City, a non-profit allying with individuals with sensory processing needs. She has also been active in the local Birmingham community, working on campaigns, interning at the Legal Aid Society of Birmingham and interning under Congresswoman Terri Sewell(D-Alabama) to improve the lives of Birmingham citizens. Renuka is the proud recipient of the President's Volunteer Service Award, a Truman Scholarship finalist, a UAB Outstanding Student Leader and a USGA Outstanding Senator. Renuka aspires to go to law school next year, and return to the South following law school to litigate for disadvantaged individuals and advocate against unjust public policy.
Active Minds
Student Organization
Active Minds is a student organization whose mission is to reduce stigma about mental health on college campuses. The organization’s goals are for college students to know that mental health conditions are common, that experiencing those conditions is not their fault and that help is available. Active Minds works towards these ends through tabling with information on mental health resources, hosting educational events with UAB’s Student Counseling Services, fundraising for the national Active Minds movement and spreading information through social media. The organization frequently partners with identity-based student organizations to speak about mental health at their chapter meetings. Each year, Active Minds places 1,100 objects (such as glow sticks or paper cranes) on the Campus Green, attached with stories of suicide awareness and messages of hope. The team strives to increase the accessibility of these conversations in communities experiencing mental health-related stigma. The commitment to this goal has resulted in the annual Mental Health and Cultures Panel and Men in Mental Health Panel.
The President and the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the University of Alabama at Birmingham are currently seeking nominations for the 2020 President’s Diversity Champion Award, an annual honor recognizing significant achievements of faculty, staff, students and student organizations toward developing a more culturally diverse and inclusive university community.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham has been designated as a 2019 recipient of the “Colleges and Institutions Committed to Diversity” Award by Minority Access Inc., for its work expanding the pool of minority scientists, researchers, and professionals in the respective fields in which they are underrepresented.