Diversity and Inclusion Grant Awardees Announced

The Office of the Provost has announced that eight recipients have been selected to receive up to $5,000 each as part of a new internal grant program to advance the University’s diversity and inclusion goals.

The Unsurpassed Student Experience Diversity and Inclusion (USE D&I) Grant program was created in February to support diversity programs and practices that help deepen understanding and engagement across multiple areas of difference, including racial, ethnic, religious, disability, nationality and veteran status, among others.

Although the grant program originally called for five awards, organizers of the program decided to fund eight because of the high quality of the applications.

Following is a list of the winning proposals along with awardees and amount of funding:

• • Crosscultural Engagement of First-year Students, submitted by Ambika Krishnakumar, professor and chair of human development and family science in Falk College. This initiative is designed to provide first-year human development and family science majors with an opportunity to explore issues surrounding diversity and inclusion through opportunities for intercultural engagement. Participants will take part in a seminar course that will include active learning experiences that challenge them to engage with cultures and communities other than their own. Award: $5,000
  • Fostering Resiliency in Undergraduate Women of Color in STEM, submitted by Dawn Johnson, chair and associate professor, WiSE Leadership. This program seeks to help women STEM students of color develop the knowledge and strategies essential for personal resiliency and success. It will focus on building a sense of community and belonging and will help students develop a network of allies to support their individual success and foster an inclusive environment. $5,000
  • Haudenosaunee Influence on American Culture, submitted by Philip Arnold, associate professor and chair of religion in the College of Arts and Sciences. The proposal calls for creating a pilot course on diversity and inclusion that focuses on the Haudenosaunee and their influence on American culture. The program is described as a “signature experience” that taps into the significance of the University’s location in Onondaga Nation territory, and it will integrate coursework with field trips to the Skä·noñh-Great Law of Peace Center and the Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation, among other activities. Award: $5,000
  • Stories Untold, submitted by Katherine McGerr, assistant professor, Department of Drama, College of Visual and Performing Arts. This workshop series will increase contact between Syracuse University drama students and working artists whose stories—in their work or their pathway to making it—are underrepresented in the department. The program will bring to campus three working artists of varying disciplines whose work will supplement the department’s curriculum and productions. The guest artists will speak to classes, lead a workshop, and participate in a question-and-answer session with a smaller group of students. Award: $5,000
  • Disability, Aging, Trauma, and Veterans Issues in Healthcare, submitted by Stephen Kuusisto, University Professor, Cultural Foundations of Education in the School of Education. This interdisciplinary course will bring together health humanities and disability studies pedagogy and research methods for students interested in pursuing careers related to health, well-being and aging. The pilot course will focus on developing students’ skills in scientific reasoning, moral reasoning, moral imagination and the disability imaginary. It also will teach them how to cross disciplinary/professional boundaries as well as borders created by race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender and sexuality, and disability. Award: $5,000
  • Diversity Dialogue, submitted by Deborah O’Malley, director of student affairs, College of Law. This initiative will engage up to 15 student leaders in a dialogue group with their peers to help foster recognition and understanding of individual and group differences. By engaging in the dialogue, participants will learn to appreciate different identities and life experiences, and enhance their ability to work in multicultural teams and thrive in diverse workplace settings. Award: $5,000
  • First-year Global Peers, submitted by Patricia Burak, director, Slutzker Center for International Services. This program would appoint a number of high-achieving students, both domestic and international, who have global experience to serve as “global peers” for First-Year Forums. Through their insights and their engagement with first-year students, they will help foster a sense of familiarity and enhanced understanding across cultural differences. Award: $4,736.
  • Project Transition, submitted by Robert Wilson, director, Office of Supportive Services. This initiative will focus on enhancing the student experience, persistence and graduation rates of first-generation and underserved students by addressing the role that families play. The program will develop programming and activities to better connect and engage families of first-generation students with the University and assist them in supporting their student through the transition from high school to college. Award: $4,300

The funded initiatives will be developed through the summer into a one-year pilot program ready to launch in the 2018-19 academic year. For more information on the USE D&I Grants, go to the grant web page.