2023 ODIB awards program recognizes outstanding work in promoting diversity, inclusion and belonging at Purdue

Purdue University’s Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging held its inaugural awards and recognition banquet April 4 to celebrate the myriad contributions to inclusive excellence made across the Purdue campus. More than 150 faculty and staff attended as individuals and teams were honored for exceptional scholarship and leadership in advancing diversity, inclusion and belonging.

Jennifer Freeman-Marshall, associate professor of English and women’s, gender and sexuality studies in the College of Liberal Arts, received the Troutner Fellow Award on Equity-Mindedness in Higher Education. The award aims to support faculty work that eradicates bias in interactions with students, faculty and staff and promotes equity-minded practices at Purdue. Freeman-Marshall will receive $5,000 to continue facilitating research on her project, titled “Black Feminist Literary Praxis: Reading, Rights, and Writing Activism.”

Seed Grants for Innovative Approaches to Enhancing Inclusive Excellence and Sense of Belonging were awarded for projects that facilitate discovery, development, pilot-testing, refinement and publishing of novel research, teaching, or engagement tools and approaches. From a highly competitive group of 28 proposals, three awards were granted in the amount of $10,000 each. This precedent-setting investment in scholarship related to diversity, inclusion and belonging reflects the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging’s commitment to contributing to the evidence-based approach necessary to help achieve excellence at scale at Purdue.

The awardees included:

• Ashima Krishna, clinical associate professor in the John Martinson Honors College, for the project “Reclaiming Heritage, Reclaiming Place, Reclaiming Identity – Documenting Black Heritage Sites in the Greater Lafayette Area​,” which seeks to address the current inequity in documentation and preservation of historic sites related to Black heritage in the local community.
• Breanya Hogue, assistant professor; Ofelia Castro Schepers, assistant professor; and Christy Wessel-Powell, assistant professor, all in the College of Education, for the project “Cultivating Spaces of Belongingness for Local Multicultural K-3 Youth Within Summer Literacy Programming Through Intentional Community Partnerships.” This six-week summer literacy program will provide high-quality, literacy-focused enrichment and resources along with culturally relevant teaching and engagement opportunities for Purdue preservice teachers and research experiences for graduate students.
• Senay Purzer, professor; Kirsten Davis, assistant professor; Ruth Wertz, assistant professor of engineering practice; and Katherine Maul, doctoral student, all in the College of Engineering, for the project “The Experiences of Disabled Graduate Students in STEM Education​.” The project, which uses a systems perspective to explore how graduate students navigate the university environment in seeking accommodations within their courses, research and teaching responsibilities, aims to inform educational policies and interventions needed to enhance the support offered to disabled graduate students.

Multiple outstanding faculty, staff and college teams were nominated for each of the new Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging awards for innovative scholarship and practices leading to a more inclusive, just and welcoming community that cultivates a greater sense of belonging at Purdue.

The recipient of the Dr. Carolyn E. Johnson Staff Excellence Award, which recognizes outstanding staff leadership in diversity, inclusion and belonging, was Briggitta August, director of Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives in the College of Liberal Arts. August was nominated for the $7,500 award for her energy, collaborative approach and innovative programs, such as the Black and Gold Walking Tour, which she launched in 2022 to increase awareness of Black Boilermaker history.

The Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging Award for Faculty Excellence was presented to Chrystal Johnson, associate professor in the College of Education, and to Margo Monteith, Distinguished Professor of Psychological Sciences and associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion in the College of Health and Human Sciences. Each received a $7,500 award in recognition of their efforts to promote a more inclusive community at Purdue. Johnson was nominated for her contributions to civic and character education and the development of digital education modules that incorporate engineering design principles. Margo Monteith was nominated for her dedication to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as for her groundbreaking work in social psychology, including her translational research on reducing stereotyping and prejudice.

The Belonging, Equity and Inclusion team from the John Martinson Honors College was recognized with the Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging College Team Excellence Award for its collective efforts. Megha Anwer, who submitted the nomination, noted, “The award dossier we submitted integrated work across units, roles, and responsibilities. It included the work of faculty, staff, students, and administrators. The narrative emphasized that we do this work for our students, but also for each other, and ourselves; that our survival, joy, and success are interconnected with each other’s. This is very much a collective, collaborative win – and each one of us has contributed to making our college the unique space it is.”

The atmosphere during the well-attended celebration was one of joy and excitement as finalists, awardees, nominators and the award program reviewers were all recognized for their hard work and dedication to creating a more equitable and inclusive campus community. 

John Gates, vice provost for diversity and inclusion, shared his thoughts on how the awards could significantly impact belonging at Purdue, stating, “We believe it’s essential we continue looking for areas where we can have a tangible impact on students’ academic success, as well as encourage and celebrate the efforts of faculty and staff in our campus community.” 

Given the high level of enthusiasm and participation in the inaugural program, the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging anticipates growth in the number of applications and nominations submitted next year and looks forward to further celebrating the distinguished individuals and teams at Purdue who embody the values of diversity, inclusion and belonging. 

For more information about the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging and its efforts to promote diversity, inclusion and belonging on campus, please visit https://www.purdue.edu/diversity-inclusion/.