Award-Winners of the 14th Annual
Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action and Diversity Awards
February 16, 2009
University-wide Recipients
Recipients of the 14th Annual Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action and Diversity Awards pose for a group picture.
Photo/Kevin Walsh
Irene Barragan
Irene Barragan has been a bilingual Administrative Assistant III in the Social Work Department now under the Care Coordination umbrella, for more than 10 years. She is essential to the smooth functioning of the office and its many employees, officials said. In her position, she works with a large number of different departments at the medical center and on campus. Barragan is a very caring person, who single-handedly organizes a very large outreach and charitable annual Christmas program called “Adopt-A-Family.” Working on behalf of the less fortunate patient population at the UC San Diego Medical Center is Barragan’s passion and she always treats each person with grace and dignity, officials said. This program requires a great deal of time outside her usual responsibilities. She personally contacts all the families with departments throughout the campus and medical centers, who then purchase gifts. Barragan photographs these families and sends the photos, along with thank you letters, to the corresponding departments. Last year, this program served more than 70 families. Not only does this bring good cheer to the families, it is well loved by the UC San Diego community, officials said.
Patricia Branz
Patricia Branz makes significant contributions to UC San Diego by promoting cultural competency of the deaf community through her outstanding work within the Moores Cancer Center, officials said. Branz has increased deaf culture competency by developing and promoting cancer awareness educational videos used by physicians that educate the deaf community about cancer issues in communities across California and nationally. Also, she recruits members of the deaf community to participate in cancer research studies and deaf students and volunteers to work at the Cancer Center. Branz cultivates deaf community partnerships through the many organizations to which she belongs, including the National Association of the Deaf, Deaf Community Services of San Diego Inc., Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf and Captioned Media Resources. Branz’s efforts bring vital cancer health information to the underserved, deaf community and promote fairness for the deaf community within UC San Diego, officials said.
Paul Bueren
Paul Bueren, senior chief engineer of the Research Vessel Melville, has directly promoted UC equal opportunity objectives by supporting and advancing women and people of color on his engineering crew, officials said. The next trip undertaken by RV Melville will mark a milestone for UCSD's Scripps Institution of Oceanography: vessel operations will be administered by an all-female engineering crew under Bueren’s supervision. Since her recent promotion, Eliza Mac will serve as Scripps ’ first female, African-American chief engineer.
Bueren’s leadership has played a paramount role in facilitating both of these historic events, officials said. His commitment to maintaining principles of fairness, cooperation and professionalism has provided opportunities for diverse members of his crew to demonstrate their capacity to excel. Bueren has set a high standard for supporting diversity at Scripps for 27 years.
Geneva Fitzsimmons
Geneva Fitzsimmons plays a pivotal and active role in the development and aid of Native American students here on the UC San Diego campus, officials said. As coordinator of the American Indian Outreach Initiatives Program on campus, through the Early Academic Outreach Program and the Student Program Coordinator of the California Native American Research Center on Health, Fitzsimmons fosters diversity on campus in recruiting Native American students, officials said. Through her position at EOAP, Fitzsimmons serves as a liaison between UC San Diego and Native American communities helping to identify, motivate and prepare American Indian middle and high school students, who are interested in higher education, to successfully complete admissions criteria and enroll at UCSD. She also provides assistance once these students are on campus by providing information on available resources. Fitzsimmons serves as the student program coordinator for CA-NARCH, which is an innovative, synergistic partnership among lead agency, Indian Health Council, San Diego State University and UC San Diego. The partnership's goal is to increase the number of Native American scientists and health care professionals to reduce health disparities among American Indian populations. The NARCH program is available to Native American students interested in pursuing a career in health. Fitzsimmons is a true diversity champion, who demonstrates all of the Principles of Community for equal opportunity and affirmative action on a daily basis, and makes a huge contribution to the fostering and development of Native American students throughout the local community reservations, in reaching their goals at UC San Diego, officials said.
Jennifer Garza
Jennifer Garza currently serves as the Faculty Led Programs Abroad coordinator, where her charge is to develop short-term, faculty-led study abroad programs that are targeted at increasing the numbers of underrepresented and underserved students in education abroad programs. Garza has led the charge to develop powerful partnerships with the Campus Community Centers at UC San Diego. She has initiated liaison roles with the LGBT Resource Center, Cross-Cultural Center and Women’s Center to do outreach, recruit and assist students in these communities in identifying resources and opportunities to study abroad.
As a result of Garza's advocacy work, she was recently recognized by the Cross-Cultural Center during the 2008 All People’s Celebration for her work in the areas of diversity and social justice at UC San Diego. Garza consistently demonstrates a sincere passion for improving the intellectual excellence of the student body at UC San Diego, officials said, adding she is a bright, thoughtful, dedicated and passionate individual, who has excelled at being an advocate for underrepresented students on this campus and is committed to providing equal access to study-abroad opportunities for these students.
Garza has a unique innate talent to work collaboratively and cooperatively with various organizations and campuswide departments in order to make UCSD a place of inclusion, a clear fundamental goal of the university’s principles of community. She is an example that one does not have to be a part of a certain community to be its biggest advocate, officials said. Garza’s work truly transcends race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and college affiliations, they said.
Dr. Ulrika Birgersdotter Green
Dr. Ulrika Birgersdotter Green is an excellent example of a champion for diversity at the UC San Diego Medical Center, officials said. Born and raised in Sweden, she came to the United States with two strikes against her: one as a Swedish speaking non-native student and two as a woman in a male-dominated profession.
She now makes a difference for others as a mentor in the International Mentoring Society, helping women in cardiology and as a leader in Women in Electrophysiology, helping women of all cultures move into careers in Cardiology/Electrophysiology. Dr. Green demonstrates concern for her clinic staff on a daily basis, officials said. She has helped a young Mexican-American woman in her clinic move from a clerk position to a research position, opening new employment horizons for her. She also funds a young boy from Tijuana to attend a private high school in the United States and plans to pay for his college tuition because she sees potential in him. She gives compassionate care, despite cultural, language, ethnicity or even monetary issues, including volunteering for the FLYING SAMARITANS, providing free physician services in Mexico, officials said.
These examples represent the core diversity values at the UCSD Medical Center, officials said. Dr. Green’s leadership reflects diversity not only in her clinic, with a diverse staff and patient population, but in her private life with her support of women’s issues in medicine and the lives of people in San Diego and beyond its borders, officials said. She is a leader and role model for diversity at the UC San Diego Medical Center, they said.
Dr. Bill Johnson
Dr. Johnson is heavily involved in outreach and programming to underrepresented and first generation students at UC San Diego. His responsibilities with Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Services (CAPS) include serving as the Chair of the Multicultural and Outreach Committee and acting as the official CAPS liaison to several departments and organizations, including Academic Enrichment Programs, the Black Staff Association, the Black Student Union, the Center for Student Involvement, the Intergroup Relations Program, the McNair Program (under AEP/Student Educational Advancement) and UJIMA.
In his first year, Dr. Johnson was awarded the Black Student Union Outstanding Staff Award for his work with black students. He is collaborating with the Black Student Union and the Center for Student Involvement to establish historically black Greek fraternity and sorority chapters at UC San Diego with the goal of bringing more diversity to the Greek community on campus.
As an executive member of UJIMA, Dr. Johnson is responsible for coordinating the mentorship program. He is also the coordinator of the FORCE program, which addresses underrepresented and first-generation college students’ adjustment to the campus environment and academic success by implementing programs and outreach workshops. Through FORCE, Dr. Johnson reinitiated the Campus Black Forum, which is an informal gathering that allows students, staff and faculty an opportunity to connect and empower each other. He is an advisor to a student organization called New Voices’ for aspiring writers, which seeks to cultivate writing talent and experience with underrepresented students.
Dr. Johnson promoted retention and recruitment of underrepresented students through presentations in both the 2007 and 2008 Dare to Dream event. Additionally, he teamed up with Student Educational Advancement’s Ambassadors of Academic Achievement Program to engage in outreach with underrepresented students from area high schools.
Dr. Tracy Johnson
Tracy Johnson is the first female African-American to be hired into a tenure-track position in the Division of Biological Sciences. In addition to her significant contributions to the world of research science, Johnson has continually made unique contributions to diversity issues at UC San Diego.
Johnson is active in universitywide diversity efforts. She was asked by former Vice Chancellor Joe Watson to participate in a task force charged with increasing the proportion of minority students who choose to come to UC San Diego. After about a year of intensive meeting and studying the situation, the task force drafted a comprehensive report of their findings. The document is being used by Admissions, the various academic units and the senior vice chancellor’s office. Additionally, Johnson is working closely with Gabriele Wienhausen, the associate dean of education, to actively recruit top minority students to undergraduate programs. She has taken day trips to local high schools as well as schools in Los Angeles to highlight the opportunities available at UC San Diego. As a result, the number of minority students who express interest in and apply to UC San Diego has increased.
Within the division, Johnson has formally served as a member of the division’s Diversity Committee, which is charged with evaluating and encouraging efforts towards diversity. To encourage minority students interested in the graduate program in the biological sciences, each summer she organizes a reception for the students involved in the various undergraduate summer research programs, like the Summer Training Academy for Research in the Sciences (STARS) and the UC Leadership Excellence through Advanced Degrees (UC LEADS) program, aimed at underrepresented populations.
Johnson is also active in the community to both strengthen her research at UC San Diego and encourage budding underrepresented scientists. These activities include serving as a STARS mentor, as an advisor for several students from the Preuss School and mentoring minority undergraduates in her laboratory. Also, Johnson has spoken at a number of receptions, hosted by underrepresented undergraduates, about strategies for negotiating the academic curriculum at UC San Diego. She was awarded the prestigious Faculty Career Development Program grant from the National Science Foundation Office for Academic Diversity and Equal Opportunity.
Dr. Makeba Jones and Rafael Hernandez (CREATE)
The recent work of members of the Center for Research in Educational Equity, Assessment & Teaching Excellence’s faculty and staff exemplify the chancellor’s appeal to the university community to further UC San Diego’s equal opportunity, equity and diversity goals, officials said. While the actions of all CREATE faculty and staff are commendable, the recent accomplishments of Makeba Jones and Rafael Hernandez are especially noteworthy, officials added.
Makeba Jones represents CREATE in the planning and development of Lincoln High School and Project Safe Way in the Diamond District, one of the most ethnically diverse and socioeconomically challenged neighborhoods in San Diego. In this capacity, she has helped Lincoln High School install a college-going culture of learning, develop its unique social justice curriculum for ninth-grade students and improve the quality of teachers. She also assists Project Safe Way (a community-based effort in which parents man 18 street corners to ensure children have a safe passage to and from school) by bringing UC San Diego student interns and research expertise to this effort.
Rafael Hernandez brings new meaning to parent involvement in the Diamond District. In addition to organizing workshops to inform parents about college application and financial aid procedures, Hernandez has met informally with parents, instructing them on methods and procedures to interact successfully with school administrators and elected officials. He has also organized a “book club” with parents from Lincoln High School to enable them to experience firsthand the educational materials used by their children. Through these innovative actions, Hernandez is helping to empower a new generation of community leaders in the Diamond District of San Diego, officials said.
The accomplishments of Jones and Hernandez are helping to revitalize the Diamond District of southeast San Diego, strengthen UC San Diego’s relations with the San Diego community and exemplify the Principles of Community, officials added.
Elsie Collado-Koman
Elsie Collado-Koman has been a dedicated 23-year employee at UC San Diego Medical Center and has committed her career to helping others be better clinicians and to making the medical center a better place for patients and staff. Collado-Koman has been a community liaison for Lincoln High School and other students who are interested in healthcare, arranging for them to shadow a respiratory therapist for a day to get them energized about health care. She also volunteers her services as an interpreter.
Collado-Koman's dedication to supporting staff is evident through her implementation of the Respiratory Care Patient Teaching Plan at UC San Diego Medical Center, instructor for Department of Nursing “Boot Camp” and her service on the Advisory Committees for Grossmont, Concord and California College Respiratory Therapist Programs, officials said.
Collado-Koman has also been an active participant in hospital committees such as the UC San Diego Staff Retention and Support Steering Committee, the UC San Diego Patient Education Committee, the UC San Diego Staff and Faculty Equal Opportunity Program Committee and the UC San Diego Power of Excellence, Customer Satisfaction Committee, Metrics Team.
Collado-Koman has been dedicated to advancing the practice of respiratory care both statewide and nationwide. She is an active member of the American Association of Respiratory Care (AARC). Collado-Koman has represented UC San Diego Respiratory Care at national forums. The AARC has accepted her submitted abstract for the 12th year in a row and she will be representing UC San Diego before an international audience. She also was instrumental in the creation of “Student Night”, where newly graduated respiratory therapy students met with the managers of all of the area Respiratory Care departments.
Ashley Maier
As coordinator of the Pediatricians and Communities Collaborating Together (PACCT) program at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Maier embodies the UC San Diego Principles of Community in her work and public service, officials said.
Maier has worked to develop and maintain more than 40 university-community partnerships. These partnerships are designed to teach UC San Diego pediatric residents the role culture plays in health care delivery. In this role, she has coordinated eight cultural immersion days of planned learning which include ethnic foods, stories and dialogues with community leaders that contribute to learning about the culture’s health beliefs, traditions and customs. Recently, she lobbied for and coordinated an immersion day on LGBT youth and teens. The immersion day was one of the most highly evaluated trainings of the year. Since her hire in 2006, 40 pediatric residents have been trained in cross-cultural competent health care delivery. This profoundly impacts the San Diego community given that 30 percent of our trainees remain in San Diego to practice pediatrics. Analysis of pediatric resident pre-post data also shows a statistically significant increase in their ability to address culture in their clinical practice.
Through her advocacy for gender equality and her public service in violence prevention, she has helped refine the PACCT program, adding domestic and teen relationship violence prevention components to the curriculum. Maier personally teaches these components to pediatric residents and they are consistently rated high by the trainees.
Her public service includes serving as the current president of the San Diego Central National Organization of Women and chair of the San Diego Domestic Violence Council, Teen Relationship Violence Prevention Committee. Maier is also a member of the UC San Diego Committee on the Status of Women.
Maier is involved in all aspects of the PACCT program and carries out her work with the utmost respect for community partners, her colleagues and her superiors, officials said. She has successfully brought her vision of diversity, gender equality and violence prevention to reality through her infusion of the UC San Diego Principles of Community into her role as the PACCT program coordinator.
Linda Navarro
As a Human Resources Specialist in the Vice Chancellor Health Sciences – Dean’s Office, Linda Navarro has always been an advocate of equal opportunity and diversity at UC San Diego. Being the first member of her family to attend college, Navarro understands the challenges facing inner-city youth and the importance of reaching and exposing youth at an early age to a university setting and a professional workplace environment. This summer, on her own initiative, Navarro partnered with Madison High School and coordinated an intensive five-week Summer Youth Development Program Internship for 19 minority students. She worked tirelessly to organize an orientation and a half-day seminar, which included a UC San Diego campus tour, a business etiquette and résumé writing workshop, a presentation on UC San Diego as a future employer, as well as a visit from Dr. Sandra Daley, UC San Diego Chief Diversity Officer.
The Summer Youth Development Program was extremely successful not only for the youth participants but for the supervisors as well. For the students, this was their first experience in the work force. To give these students an opportunity to fill out hiring paperwork at an early age and to receive the basic tools to make them successful in and out of school was just the first step to acclimating them to their future. For many students, having someone praise and acknowledge them on a job well done was a new experience that provided them with a new sense of confidence. It was rewarding to see the supervisors become so involved and engaged in the students’ lives serving as mentors and advisors. The program could not have been a success if not for Navarro’s perseverance. She proactively sought buy-in from Vice Chancellor Health Sciences departments and central offices to support the proposal for the program.
Supervisors who participated in the program have expressed an interest in having their student return next year and are looking forward to tracking their progress and watching them grow to their full potential. Navarro put her heart into bringing this program to fruition and said she is delighted that her collaboration with Madison High School created a diverse learning environment for adolescents in the San Diego community. Her efforts raised awareness of the challenges many of these individuals face today and the importance of early exposure to mentors and a professional workplace environment.
Navarro currently serves on several committees including the UC San Diego Outreach Campus Committee and the United Way Steering Committee.
Barry Niman
Barry Niman is the director of Accommodation Counseling and Consulting Services (ACCES), a division of the UC San Diego Human Resources Department, and the co-chair of Community Advocates for Disability Rights and Education (CADRE). He is a tireless advocate for students, staff and faculty with disabilities, officials said. When he learns of a site on campus where access is difficult or unavailable, he won’t quit until the issue is resolved. He actively promotes awareness of the challenges faced by some members of our community. He promotes health education on the campus and he teaches by example the virtues of courtesy, respect and kindness to everyone. He developed the UC San Diego Health and Wellness Lecture series and the Celebration of Abilities Week annual event.
In a large institution like UC San Diego, minorities need an advocate. Fellow staff members, students and faculty with disabilities have, at times, been forgotten in the planning and operation of the university, officials said. They know they can always go to Niman for assistance. Niman goes far beyond his duties as Director of ACCES. He actively participates in Staff Association events and freely gives his own time to promote equality and awareness.
Niman also is involved with a mentoring program for disabled secondary and high school students, which pairs young people with disabilities with successful adults with similar challenges. It encourages them to strive to have full lives and make contributions to their communities and society, and provides them with the tools they need to succeed.
Due in large part to Niman’s efforts, UC San Diego is moving toward a much more welcoming and accepting environment for people with disabilities, officials said. His efforts have brought about much more than a wheelchair ramp here or there. He is helping to change the culture of the campus to be more inclusive and diverse, theysaid.
Maria Casillas-Sanchez
Maria Casillas-Sanchez is an advocate for the Latino community, bringing much needed pediatric behavioral and developmental assessments and treatments to families who would otherwise not have access to the exceptional healthcare provided by UC San Diego. As coordinator of the School Ready Child Ready program at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, department of pediatrics, Casillas-Sanchez works tirelessly to deliver a culturally sensitive and language appropriate program that provides developmental and behavioral services for Latino children ages 0 to 5 and their families. It is through this work that she embodies the UC San Diego Principles of Community.
In her work, Casillas-Sanchez stresses the importance of understanding, education, outreach, respect and collaboration, officials said. Using these principles, she has coordinated the behavioral assessments and treatments to more than 600 Latino children ages to -5 living in the South Bay region of San Diego County. She accomplished this in a little more than two years. Largely due to her ability to develop trusting relationships in the Latino community, her knowledge of the South Bay region and her ability to work collaboratively with providers and child development experts the program exceeded its target 2007-2008 goals by 100 percent,, providing 454 assessments and 495 treatments, officials said.
Additionally, Casillas-Sanchez is a diversity champion and advocate, who values community input. For instance, to further refine the program she and a colleague are currently developing key informant interviews and focus groups to gather parental input on how to improve the treatment classes, assessments and other services the program provides. This information will prove to be invaluable to the sustainability of the program, reinforcing the relationship between the program and the people the program serves, officials said.
Through her work, Casillas-Sanchez has become the face of UC San Diego for the School Ready Child Ready program in the South Bay region.
Dr. Cathy Thompson
Through her work with students, staff and faculty, Dr. Cathy “Cat” Thompson provides support, promotes acceptance and facilitates dialogue on issues of gender, race and sexual orientation. Through her leadership, the women’s peer education program has provided leadership and voice to issues of gender. Through creative programs such as the “Gender Buffer Series,” film screening and discussion on masculinity and violence against women, promotion of Take Back the Night and Eating Disorders Awareness Week, she promotes issues of women and girls such as gender bias, sexual violence and the impact of strict adherence to traditional gender roles. As a feminist psychologist, she said she believes that it is important to raise awareness about such issues so that we can continue to address inequities based on gender and expand the options that women and men have to fully express themselves and live as healthy human beings. Thompson recently organized a successful “Women in Psychology Conference” and she champions issues of race through her groundbreaking group, “Outside of the Box.” This informal group is a safe space for students, faculty and staff of multiracial/multiethnic and other non-dominant identities to share their experiences and discuss issues in an open and supportive community atmosphere. Through her liaison work with the campus community centers, she educates and consults on the important psychological issues of race, gender and sexual orientation. Thompson is a true diversity champion, officials said.
Geanncarlo Lugo-Villarino
Geanncarlo Lugo-Villarino was born in La Paz, Mexico and immigrated to the United States in 1989 where he lived with his mother and grandmother in the Barrio Logan neighborhood of San Diego. He realized at an early stage that his path to success would be achieved through education and earned a variety of awards including an NIH Bridges to the Future fellowship, a Minority Access to Research Careers fellowship and a Graduate Research Fellowship from the NSF to promote his thesis studies at Harvard University.
Lugo-Villarino said he truly appreciates the programs that have allowed him to rise above the poverty of his roots to become a leader in academic research and teaching. He has, from the beginning of his training, sought out every opportunity to educate and encourage underrepresented students to follow a career in the life sciences. He is an active member of several local organizations, including the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science, for which Lugo-Villarino founded a local chapter while an undergraduate student at SDSU, the NIH BRIDGES program, the NIH McNair Scholar program and the UC San Diego CURE program. Over the past year, Lugo-Villarino has been invited to speak at four local events sponsored by underrepresented groups in the biological sciences. Two of these were as a keynote speaker. Lugo-Villarino is recognized as one of the leading proponents of minority students in the greater San Diego area and is passionate in motivating young, underrepresented students to pursue careers in the biomedical sciences, officials said.
He also is extremely enthusiastic regarding his scientific interests and exhibits great leadership and teaching abilities. Lugo-Villarino is currently supervising three undergraduate researchers who are sponsored through minority programs. He has done a superb job in helping them gain the confidence to work independently and drive them to realize their potentials. Lugo-Villarino is a shining example of how a motivated person can rise from humble beginnings to become a star in science and education, officials said.
ACCES
Fred Bellinger, Bonnie Matheny, Wendie Sandvik and Alane Reardon of Accommodation Counseling and Consulting Services have demonstrated their commitment to ensuring that UC San Diego’s faculty, staff and students understand how people with disabilities are a part of the University’s diversity efforts, officials said. They have contributed greatly to the success of many diverse members of the UC San Diego community and have fostered educational opportunities that have highlighted the talents and capabilities of people with disabilities. The majority of the UC San Diego community members, whom they have assisted have been women and people of color. They have gone beyond their job responsibilities to enable staff, faculty and students to manage difficult situations and accomplish great things. They have clearly demonstrated their commitment to diversity, fairness and creating goodwill among people in our community, officials siad.
Through their collaborations with the UC San Diego Chancellor’s Office, Vice Chancellor of Business Affairs, Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Women’s Center, Cross Cultural Center, Office with Disabilities, Equal Opportunity/Staff Affirmative Action and Community Advocates for Disability Rights and Education, they have contributed to this year’s Health and Wellness Lecture and Celebration of Abilities events. These contributions also included their active involvement in a successful educational experience called “In Your Shoes,” through which staff and students with and without disabilities were able to share information about ways to influence positively attitudes regarding people with disabilities.
Bellinger, Matheny, Sandvik and Reardon have demonstrated their willingness and commitment to contribute to more awareness and a better understanding of some of the obstacles students, faculty and staff with disabilities encounter at UC San Diego and about how they are able to overcome the obstacles and be successful. They have a passion for promoting insightful learning opportunities for all of us in the UC San Diego community and they deserve our recognition of their extraordinary accomplishments, officials said.
Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation (CMBC)
Recruiting a diverse group of graduate students has been a focus for the Scripps Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation. Over the last several years, these efforts have served to increase enrollment from underrepresented groups. Women now represent 54 percent of the students participating in CMBC’s interdisciplinary training program. Among the trainees, 25 percent are from underrepresented groups. These students serve as role models for potential students and are excellent recruiters, officials said.
CMBC partners with the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science and supports attendance of Scripps graduate students to the annual conference. These students organize a symposium each year on career opportunities in marine science and ocean conservation. This year, CMBC supported three Scripps graduate students and a Native American undergraduate student.
In other outreach efforts, members of CMBC faculty spoke at the Association for Women in Science events, served on the Women in Science Round Table at Howard University and hosted Summer Training Academy for Research in the Sciences (STARS) students. STARS offers research experiences for undergraduates from underrepresented groups. Two CMBC students served as science mentors at the National Ocean Sciences Bowl for diversity designated high schools. Another CMBC student made a presentation to educationally disadvantaged students through UC LEADS. In August, CMBC sponsored a visit to the Birch Aquarium for 26 underserved children and teenagers from the Town and Country Learning Center. The event was coordinated by a CMBC student.
CMBC staff participate in outreach through the NSF-funded Center of Excellence in Science and Technology Programs at Cal State Los Angeles and provided seminars and plenaries at their events. They make annual visits to historically black colleges and universities including Howard University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. They also attended a Bouchet Society conference—the Bouchet Society is an organization that promotes diversity and excellence in doctoral education.
This nomination recognizes the following CMBC faculty, staff and students for their outreach efforts: Dr. Lisa Levin, Dr. Naomi Oreskes, Dr. Russell Chapman, Dr. Sarah Mesnick and graduate students Damien Cie, Elisa Maldonado, Michael Navarro, Aaron Hartman, Melissa Garren and Ivan Rosero.
UC San Diego Senior Behavioral Health Unit
The UC San Diego Medical Center Senior Behavioral Health Unit continues to champion its Diversity Program. Their goal is steadfast, to maintain awareness of diverse cultures, and to respect and develop the potential of its members, officials said. They accomplish this with their ongoing “Divers-a-Days” Program, celebrating different cultures and groups every other month.
The celebrations are scheduled for various months throughout the year to celebrate Asian-American culture, African-American culture, Mexican culture, Euro-American culture, Northeast USA culture and South-East USA culture. During the celebrations, the unit is decorated with photographs, specialty items and clothing relevant to the specific culture/group being recognized. Poster boards, created with historical and geographical information, are used as educational tools. To broaden the cultural experience in the Psychiatry Department, the poster boards are shared with the Neuropsychiatric and Behavioral Medicine Unitand Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Services units. Cultural music, videos and trivia are featured for each celebration. During the trivia sessions, patients, visitors and staff group together for a question and answer period about the respective culture. This activity heightens awareness and appreciation by staff, patients, the patients’ families and staff from other units who attend the “Divers-a-Days” celebrations.
The highlight of each celebration is a potluck luncheon. This is a unique gathering as staff members and visitors of other cultures taste the native food and learn how to prepare the specialty dishes. Recipes are shared with suggestions on preparing the dishes successfully. All staff members participate, increasing their understanding and appreciation of different cultures. With each cultural celebration offered on the unit, the department accomplishes their Diversity Program goal to maintain awareness of diverse cultures and to show respect for each unique member, officials said.
The Senior Behavioral Health Unit is rich with staff members of different cultures able to interact with patients in the patient’s own native language. The staff speaks Spanish, German, Tegalo, Russian, Farsi, Vietnamese, Korean and Danish. Some patients never learned English or with age and memory loss may revert back to their native language, even though they are able to speak English. This adds an important inherent dimension, effective cross-cultural communication, in support of their diversity program goal. Multilingual staff adjusts to their patients’ changing needs. The department strives to maintain awareness of diverse cultures and to offer culturally sensitive, linguistically appropriate care, in response to each patient’s health care needs.
Auxiliary & Plant Services Facilities Management Department
Facilities Management is one of the most diverse departments at UC San Diego and most representative of the demographic trends occurring in the national workforce today. In the last twelve months 25 percent of all placements met a diversity goal and of the 426 employees that comprise the Facilities Management Team, 275 are persons of color. These are the highest statistics provided in Business Affairs for the 2007-2008 reporting period. These numbers could not be attained without a strong commitment to diversity and workplace inclusion from Facilities Management’s leadership and human resource strategy, officials said. Facilities Management credits its department leaders and its recruitment, learning and development practices in achieving its diverse workforce.
Persons of color in Facilities Management represent 65 percent of its workforce; this is 13 points higher than the average for Business Affairs and 20 points higher than the campus average. This data shows diversity is alive and well and continues to create a rich atmosphere of knowledge and talent from individuals who represent all facets of society, officials said.
Facilities Management has adopted a multicultural communication model. Efforts are made to provide language translation during one-to-one staff meetings for benefits and other Human Resources related matters, at group trainings, at operational meetings and in translated electronic notices.
Facilities Management uses multiple electronic job boards, publications and community networks to promote job opportunities such as: SignOnSanDiego.com, IMDiversity.com, and UrbanLeague.com. Human Resources provides weekly electronic notices of the department’s job opportunities to communicate information and promote lateral and promotional opportunities within the department and encourage employees to recommend the university to family and friends. This announcement reaches more than 700 employees on a weekly basis. All hiring committees are composed of members with diverse backgrounds to ensure that fair and unbiased selections are made in each case.
Facilities Management is in year five of working with Career Connection to deliver monthly career development workshops to its employees. Once a month, Auxiliary and Plant Services Human Resources teams with Career Connection to provide workshops in resume writing, career assessment, interview skills, etc. The workshops are aimed at providing employees in service, clerical and technical areas with tools and resources needed to manage and advance their careers at UC San Diego and beyond. The Human Resources Team also offers individual career counseling, resume writing and interview skills training. In addition, any internal applicant who does not get selected for a position may contact Human Resources and ask for feedback on how they did in the interview process.
Facilities Management consistently uses both short and long term on the job training rotation programs to provide employees an opportunity to work in other higher level jobs before the jobs are posted so that internal employees have the exposure to the work and an opportunity to learn and build the skills necessary to compete for the promotional opportunity. Employees who participated in these training opportunities were given an opportunity to learn the job that they may not have otherwise had.
UC San Diego Early Childhood Education Center
The UC San Diego Early Childhood Education Center is a wonderful gem settled within the Mesa Graduate Housing complex on campus, officials said. It offers a safe and educational environment for more than 200 children ranging from ages 2 months to kindergarten. The children themselves contribute to the diverse environment, as children of faculty, staff and students who have come from around the world to UC San Diego. More importantly, the staff and administration of the ECEC present curriculum that promotes diversity.
The staff and administration arrange for individuals and groups of various backgrounds to perform for the children. In October, “Running Grunnion”, a Native American storyteller came in traditional attire to recount stories from his culture. Other events include: Chinese Dragon Dancers, Irish Step Dancers and an African American drummer. Holidays of many cultures are also taught and celebrated in the classrooms, such as a recent celebration for the Hindu New Year “Diwali”. Students play with dreidels and learn songs for the Chanukah season.
The students learn of all cultures, traditions, and innately accept their classmates. The ECEC staff and administration provide the enhanced opportunities to learn and grow.
Vice Chancellor Recipients
Academic Affairs –Human Resources Unit of the Office
Bobb Barile, Director
Earline Ventura, HR Analyst
Linda Thai Schlossman, Program Coordinator
The Human Resources unit, comprised of Bobb Barile, Earline Ventura and Linda Thai Schlossman, has shown great commitment in promoting staff diversity across all of Academic Affairs. Their considerable efforts and hard work in the areas of staff outreach, training and development have greatly contributed to the progress we have made in achieving our diversity goals, officials said.
Academic Affairs is a very large and highly decentralized organization, and its diversity efforts emphasize a collaborative relationship between the SVCAA, divisions and operating units. Officials said they believe that working together and communicating effectively in a culturally diverse environment is essential to the mission of the university. A major goals is to educate our business officers, hiring managers and staff in general on the importance and benefits of diversity. As HR Director, Barile is responsible for leading staff diversity efforts in Academic Affairs and serves as a vocal advocate on issues related to equal opportunity and staff affirmative action. He has provided great leadership in promoting the benefits of workforce diversity in all our units.
Ventura takes primary responsibility for developing and following through on outreach programs. As part of her duties, she serves on the UC San Diego Outreach Council, where she has been active in promoting recruitment, public relations and outreach for the campus. In support of these efforts, Ventura participated in 11 different outreach events and career fairs during the past year. The unit strives to attain a balance between attendance at general interest job fairs as well as those that target a particular ethnic or community group, as well as veterans and people with disabilities. Officials said theybelieve it imperative that the university has continuous visibility in the community to support our outreach efforts.
It became apparent to Ventura during her attendance at community job fairs that interested outside applicants were often confused or intimidated by the nomenclature and UCSD-specific terminology used in many of our job postings. To address this concern, she developed a collection of marketing materials that are distributed at outreach events. A series of fliers and pamphlets were created, which are intended to alleviate some of the apprehension for job seekers, while making our position postings more “friendly” to those without prior UCSD or higher education experience. These materials have been extremely well received at outreach fairs and by our hiring managers and HR contacts.
Through these outreach activities, Ventura serves as an unofficial “ambassador” for Academic Affairs on campus and in the community. She is becoming increasingly recognized as a campus leader in promoting diversity within Academic Affairs and at UC San Diego, officials said.
The HR unit is also charged with the creation and implementation of programs in support of employee career development. Programs such as these are integral components of the campus’ overall succession management planning and a central goal of all these programs is to provide opportunities for career development and advancement of our diverse staff in Academic Affairs.
Ventura coordinates training and development programs for the Academic Affairs business officers group. These include the ABA Mentorship Program, which pairs experienced UCSD managers from Academic Affairs with newer business officers seeking to enhance their management skills, better understand the UCSD organizational culture and develop a network of resources on campus to assist them in their daily work.
Ventura also takes lead responsibility for administering the Academic Affairs Business Officer Academy, or BOA. This successful staff enrichment program provides training, guidance and support to staff members with an interest in becoming business officers. The BOA is a two-year program centered on case study, small group discussions and personal interactions such that the participants gain an understanding and appreciation of the role of the business officer at UCSD. Academic Affairs was especially pleased to be able to open the BOA for application campus-wide last year and to include participants from Health Sciences, Student Affairs and Scripps.
As the newest member of the HR team, Thai Schlossman is responsible for some of the more recent training programs. In spring 2008, she launched the Academic Affairs Student Apprenticeship Program, designed to offer substantive, practical work-learning experiences to undergraduate and graduate students at UCSD and other local universities. The program allows students from UCSD and area colleges to gain valuable work experience via short-term assignments, with the potential for them to become future career employees.
The newest program is UExplore, a nine-month staff enrichment program designed for early-career and entry-level Academic Affairs employees. The mission of UExplore is to assist participants in identifying realistic and appropriate professional development goals, providing them with the tools to make educated decisions regarding their careers. We are especially pleased with the diversity of our first UExplore class, with 56 percent of the participants coming from underrepresented ethnic groups.
This unit’s efforts to support the excellence of the university, the diversity of its workforce and the training and development of its staff are highly deserving of the special recognition inherent in this award, and serve as a worthy example for others to emulate, officials said.
Business Affairs – Temporary Employment Services
Temporary Employment Services continuously supports the campus' commitment to diversity by participating in several career fairs within the community every year. The Urban League, Jobing.Com, Southwestern College, Career Expo are just a few. TES also actively participates in the "How to Get Hired at UCSD" workshops and assists several employment development organizations within the community with resume preparation and review, mock interviews and other outreach services.
The department currently employs more than 250 employees in the temporary pool. The current composition of diversity for the temporary pool is 45 percent from under-represented groups. This percentage has been maintained for the past several years.
In 2007, TES hired 473 new employees into the temporary pool. In all, 48 percent of them were from under-represented groups. Of the 157 TES employees that transferred into career positions, 45 percent were from under-represented groups. These percentages have remained consistent for almost a decade.
TES has also continued to support diversity with the Career Financial Floater program. The program consists of six career employees that float to various UCSD departments, providing assistance with financial, payroll, personnel and contract and grant administration. The pool of Financial Floaters has strongly reflected diversity, averaging approximately 50 percent of employees from under-represented groups since the inception of the program, officials said.
External Relations – Pat Carson and Andrea Ravel-Graves
Last year, Carson conceived of a program to provide integrated training to all External Relations - Development staff in a variety of areas. This included baseline skills and a broader training in employee recruitment, retention and career development. A natural result of this program has been a culture of inclusion and equal opportunity for learning and growth. Emphasis on inclusiveness is vital in developing an organic organizational character which attracts and retains the best talent. This has been particularly helpful in retaining staff in under-represented groups.
In September 2007, Andrea Ravel-Graves became the new Training Coordinator to spearhead our training efforts in Development. In this position Ravel-Graves works with employees to define their personal training needs. Each individual participating in this program is given specific training goals to develop supervisory skills, fund raising knowledge and increase their understanding of campus operations. Each participant develops clear career path goals and a plan to reach these goals. Participants are encouraged to take part in mentoring, small group training sessions and webinars to advance their skills.
The training program encourages all employees to take advantage of promotional opportunities as they become available. This program has been especially beneficial to administrative staff members.
Promoting cross-cultural understanding is always a priority for External Relations. Within the next few months, Ravel-Graves and Carson will offer an in-house diversity module for Development staff. Ravel-Graves will track statistics on the program. It is expected that at the one-year mark we will see results that indicated participants have taken advantage of promotional opportunities and we have increased staff diversity retention in critical areas.
Health Sciences – George Hightower
George Hightower is a remarkable young man and a true champion of affirmative action and equal opportunity, officials said. As a UCSD sophomore, his earnest enthusiasm and interest in conducting research in medical virology led him to the laboratory of Dr. Douglas Richman. He worked tirelessly during the summers and part-time during the school year and made substantial contributions to Dr. Richman’s laboratory. His performance as an undergraduate at UCSD and his success in the laboratory helped him receive admission to the highly competitive MD/PhD program at UCSD.
Since childhood, Hightower has made a commitment to becoming a physician and social justice. More recently, he has completed his first two years in medical school and has returned to the laboratory where he is half-way through his PhD in the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program.
Meanwhile, Hightower has dedicated his time to helping others. For the past several years, he has spent significant amounts of time at the Harriet Tubman School in La Mesa teaching science and math to under-represented minorities. He said he believes the biggest obstacle to increasing minority representation in the scientific and medical professions is math and science education in primary school and the lack of role models. During the past year, he has coordinated hands-on science activities and a math tutoring program. He also has mentored and worked with a UCSD undergraduate student to improve science instruction and student achievement. He also spoke to elementary and middle school students and careers in science and took part in the UCSD SURF program this summer, where he counseled undergraduates from UCSD and from historically black colleges around the country on how to prepared for successfully applying to MD and PhD programs in health sciences.
Clearly, Hightower is a special individual whose selfless commitment to others and leadership in outreach and training for underprivileged minorities is highly commendable, officials said. In addition, he does this quietly. He doesn’t advertise his accomplishments. No one hears about his activities unless they ask. Hightower is an incredible human being, A true diversity champion and a living example of humility, officials said.
Marine Sciences – SIO Diversity Website Team
Vice Chancellor Tony Haymet would like to recognize the significant diversity outreach efforts of the Scripps Diversity Web Site Team comprised of Shannon Casey, Lucinda (Lucy) Gonzales and Russ Chapman. This team designed and implemented and will maintain the Scripps Diversity Web Pages that are linked to the Scripps homepage and, thus, are only "one click away" from the web entrance to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Student Affairs – Counseling and Psychological Services
The Vice Chancellor-Student Affairs special recognition award for this year goes to Counseling and Psychological Services, under the leadership of Dr. Reina Juarez. Counseling and Psychological Services has a long-standing practice of hiring and developing a very diverse staff.
This diversity contributes to outstanding service to the campus' student population, providing excellent role models as well as a significant comfort level for students in discomfort, officials said. Of particular impact this past year is the hire of an excellent African-American male counseling psychologist. In a new effort to work closely with student organizations, this individual has been placed at the Price Center. This allows him to work more directly to address the unique needs of students of color. This work is already having a positive impact on the wellness of the student population, a major focus in Student Affairs, officials said.
As an example of the CAPS staff development efforts, a current initiative focuses on understanding multicultural counseling issues, which serves to strengthen our staff skills and provide better services to our students. The continuing, conscientious approach of Juarez and her team contribute to our staff diversity as well as to UCSD students, officials said.
UCSD Medical Center – The UC San Diego Medical Center Diversity Association
The UC San Diego Medical Center Diversity Association was recognized as an official association in August 2007. In a little more than a year, it has become a vital contributor to the medical center’s awareness of and respect for the health system’s rich multicultural environment, officials said. The UCSD Medical Center is a hub of diversity, from the patients and community it serves to the employees and faculty who provide care.
The caregivers’ goal is to provide excellent care and services to each and every patient and the work of the diversity association has helped improve the system’s ability to function as an effective team serving many population. Under the leadership of the Executive Board, diversity association volunteers have held celebrations featuring exhibits, poetry, dancers, musicians and information for Black History Month, Irish American Heritage Month, Philippine Independence Day and Native American/Indian Heritage Month and San Diego LGBT Pride Month and marched with UCSD in the San Diego Pride Parade.
The association hosted Imam Taha, who spoke on “Muslim American Culture and Ethics.” It also ahs reached out to faculty to give talks on health disparities and cultural barriers to accessing health care. The association also sponsored a holiday food drive for needy families. The group’s tireless efforts to raise the visibility of the many different cultures within the health care system, promote the value of diversity and engage the workforce in a variety of celebrations and educational events promoting tolerance and understanding has been extraordinary, officials said.
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