UNC Charlotte’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion selected 13 proposals for fall 2023 Inclusive Excellence Grants. Projects were chosen for their potential to advance diversity, promote equity and foster inclusion at UNC Charlotte and the surrounding community. Project proposals, submitted by faculty and staff, will address opportunities related to diversity education; faculty, staff and student recruitment or retention; institutional excellence in policy and practice; or cultural programming.
“Inclusive Excellence Grants are proving to be effective in helping to create meaningful opportunities for learning ways to best serve and be mindfully inclusive of diverse groups on our campus and throughout our city,” said Brandon Wolfe, chief diversity and inclusion officer. “The grants, which are relatively modest, make possible the development of innovative ideas that otherwise might be unsupported.”
Applications for spring 2024 Inclusive Excellence Grants will be available Aug. 21; they are due Oct. 9. Read about fall 2023 Inclusive Excellence Grants and their project teams composed of faculty, staff and graduate and undergraduate students from across the University:
2023 Annual Intertribal Powwow at UNC Charlotte
Michelle Stanley
The Native American Caucus and the Native American Student Association will co-host the second annual Intertribal Powwow. It will build on the success of last year's event to continue providing opportunities for community building and Native-led programming, and improving a sense of belonging among Natives at Charlotte.
2024 Thriving Together Symposium
Terrence Harper, Leigh Norwood, Phylicia Currence
The symposium is an annual opportunity for sharing student, staff, and faculty feedback and sharing best practices for creating a campus climate that epitomizes equity, inclusivity and belonging. The symposium centers the needs of students but data likely has implications for staff and faculty wellness, and recruitment and retention.
ADVANCE Speaker Series
Eddy Souffrant, Andrea Dulin
A collaboration will be developed among University offices and departments that seek to support the integration of effective Equity, Diversity and Inclusion themes and practices into their work.
DEIA Descriptive Practices Study
Savannah Lake, Joseph Nicholson
Atkins Library will develop a usability study to evaluate records within its catalog and collections that contain outdated, offensive or problematic terminology, and ask library users from affected communities to share language that better represents them. This project serves as a contribution to a widening field of inquiry into issues of representation and inclusiveness in library metadata.
Inclusive Stories of Health
Gordon Hull, Margaret Quinlan, Amber Knight, Erin Basinger
A series of lectures, seminars and workshops in health and medical humanities will explore health inequities experienced by women, racial minorities, the disabled and others to raise awareness and competency for students pursuing health care careers and for those already in health care professions.
Innovative Approaches to Spanish Teaching for Latinx Heritage Speakers in the Carolinas
Javier Garcia Leon, Paloma Fernández Sánchez, Olga Padilla-Falto, Maria Lorena Delgadillo Latorre
The 2024 Heritage Language Learning Symposium to be held on campus will enhance diversity, promote equity and foster inclusion through the promotion of innovative practices and experiences for teaching Spanish to Latinx heritage speakers in the Carolinas.
Intercultural Development: Preparing Today’s Students to be Global Leaders Tomorrow
Susana Cisneros
Three workshops will expand the SPAN 3202 Advanced Conversation and Composition curriculum to help students develop their Spanish in the context of thinking, reading, speaking, listening and writing critically about the impact of socio-historical patterns on cultural norms in today's world.
International Festival, Fall 2023
Joanne Michaud, Joe Hoff
The International Festival, to be held on September 23, provides an opportunity for students to share their culture and celebrate diversity and a sense of belonging for UNC Charlotte’s international cultural groups. I-Fest is a space for the greater Charlotte community to enjoy cultural diversity on UNC Charlotte’s campus.
Justine Lindsay: Mental Wellness While Breaking Barriers
Erica Lennon, Renita Sengupta, Emily Brown, Daniela Recabarren, Sonya Ramsey, Jenn Byrd, Chelsea Ortiz
Justine Lindsay, a member of the Carolina Panthers TopCats and the first openly trans-identified cheerleader in the NFL, will meet with students to discuss navigating spaces that historically have been occupied by white cisgender women and address the campus community on the impact of race and gender identity in sports and on mental health.
Pride Programming Board
Chelsea Ortiz
A Pride Programming Board will support and develop programming that affirms, uplifts and centers for LGBTQ+ students at UNC Charlotte while educating students seeking to be allies of the LGBTQ+ community. Five student pride coordinators will be on the board to support the spectrum of identities under the LGBTQ+ umbrella.
STEAMSATIONAL: Engaging Low-Wealth Urban Students in Summer STEM-based Writing Camps
Heather Coffey, Lucy Arnold
Ten campers in grades 3-8 from Title 1 schools will receive scholarships to participate in an academic summer camp of their choice focusing on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math. Representatives of the UNC Charlotte Writing Project, UNC Charlotte faculty, and UNC Charlotte Teaching Fellows will support campers through innovative content and activities.
Wellness Task Forces Diversity Competencies Series
Daniela Recabarren, Emily Stewart, Steve Muir, Janaka Lewis
The Health and Well-being Unit Wellness Taskforces (Black Wellness, Latinx Wellness, and LGBTQ+ Wellness) will develop a series of competency trainings for health and well-being employees on diversity for the identities outlined.
Working with Diverse Populations of PreK-12 Students
Tisha Perkins Greene, Ann Jolly, Coreen Okraski, Kate Gilbert, Niki Sashington
Monthly seminars will provide training to student teachers and clinical educators to explore solutions to the challenges student teachers face when learning to work with diverse populations of student learners.
Working with Gender-Expansive Client: Effective Strategies for Counselors and Stakeholders
Kristie Opiola, Susan Furr, Sejal Foxx
Two educational events, the Bob Barret Distinguished Lecture in Multicultural Issues and an in-depth skills workshop for counselors will provide insight and education to current students and community professional counselors in regard to best practices for working with gender expansive clients.