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Diversity and Inclusion Efforts That Really Work

• David Pedulla

A Stanford and Harvard professor convened a symposium on what’s actually working to improve diversity and inclusion in organizational life. In this article, David Pedulla summarizes the main findings. First, organizations should set goals, collect data, and hold people accountable for improving diversity within the organization. Second, organizations should abandon traditional discrimination and harassment reporting systems—these often lead to retaliation. Employee Assistance Plans (EAPs), ombuds offices, and transformative dispute resolution systems can not only play a critical role in reducing retaliation but also provide fuel for organizational change. Third, organizations should check to ensure that technologies used to assist in hiring and promotion aren’t inherently biased. Fourth, companies must avoid tokenism. Finally, organizations should get managers and other leaders involved in diversity programs from the start. This will increase buy-in and lead to smooth implementation.

Five best practices.

In the wake of major social and political changes over the past decades, leading companies are taking steps to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion. Yet progress in most sectors remains tepid. Programs designed to increase diversity and inclusion in the workplace often fail . So that leads to a natural question: What’s actually working?

• DP David Pedulla is an associate professor of sociology at Stanford University.

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UMD Libraries announce the recipients of the 2024 Library Awards for Undergraduate Research and the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Award

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2024 Library Awards for Undergraduate Research.  This year’s Library Award for Undergraduate Research is Masong Yang, class of 2025 majoring in history. Julia Grafstein, class of 2024, also studying history, is the recipient of the Libraries’ Award for Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) research.

The Library Award for Undergraduate Research and IDEA Award competition is open to all currently enrolled undergraduates. Each year, awards of $1,000 are issued to undergraduates whose work best demonstrates the value of using library services and information resources in research projects. The IDEA award seeks to recognize and empower students to explore diversity issues, educate themselves, and inspire others to advance social justice by embracing IDEA values in their research.

Julia Grafstein: 2024 Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) Library Award Winner

Grafstein's submission is a research paper written for the History Honors Thesis program at the University of Maryland. Her submission explores coalition-building in the transgender movement which has received scant attention from scholars in history or gender studies. In an effort to understand trans activists' motivations and how they worked with others, this thesis analyzes the partnerships formed within the transgender community and with potential allies of the lesbian, gay, and feminist communities. Using archival records, magazines and newspapers, published reports, and oral histories, this thesis argues that trans activism in the period between 1970 and the end of the 1990s was multifarious, fractious and inconsistent. It also demonstrates that trans activists worked to build coalitions with potential allies in the women's movement and the gay and lesbian rights movement whenever possible. Such coalitions held the promise of greater influence and of shared values. Grafstein submitted only the introduction and my second chapter of a larger thesis.  The submission focuses on transgender coalition-building within the transgender community and gives insight into the internal struggles of a nascent movement.

Dr. Katarina Keane, who supported Grafstein’s application, writes "Julia examines the challenging, slow, contentious but ultimately successful work at building a trans rights movement in the late twentieth century. She is attuned to the subtle ways that trans activists were at odds but worked to find common ground and to advance rights and access to resources for their community. Julia’s papers offered an innovative and valuable contribution to the historical literature  on the women’s movement, the gay rights movement, and trans activism. As Robyn Muncy, the director of the department honors program noted, this was "a gutsy and  painful history to uncover."  

Mason Yang: Winner of the 2024 Library Award for Undergraduate Research

Written as a research paper for an independent study, Yang seeks to define what masculinity and success looked like to Jewish men in the mid-twentieth century. To do so, this paper examines New York Times obituaries throughout the 1940s and analyzes the content that prominent Jewish men had published about themselves. These obituaries represent the fulfillment of the Jewish male aspirations and what they wanted to be known for. Along with this, this paper also explores Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, a 1949 play that narrates the life and death of an “everyman.” While he strives to find success and fame for himself and his family, he fails to achieve the same aspirations as the men in the obituaries. Ultimately, this paper works to add complexity and new dialogue to the understanding of Jewish masculinity and also seeks to generate interest in comparatively working with both nonfiction and fiction primary printed sources.

Dr. Bernie Cooperman, who supported Yang’s application, writes "What made Mason’s paper stand out was not just the sophistication of the task he had set for  himself but also the next step.  Mason went looking for a literary source that could help him bring his newspaper accounts into focus. I intend to use his model and his research in creating library exercises for students in two of my  courses next year requiring all students to do a (more limited) newspaper search and analysis with reference to literary sources. If Mason could do it more or less on his own, I think students will be able to do it on a more limited scope and  with more direction and help."

Members of the 2024 Awards Jury were Patricia Kosco Cossard, Chair, University Libraries; Katy Lawly, Senior Lecturer and Faculty Director, Master of Information Management (MIM), CPIM, CIRPS, College of Information Studies; Eric Lindquist, History, American Studies, Classics, and Religion Librarian; Celina McDonald, Government Information & Criminology Libraria; Jordan Sly, Head of Humanities and Social Science Librarians, Anthropology, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Digital Humanities, and SLLC Librarian for German, Italian and French Studies, University Libraries.  These awards were funded by the generosity of the University of Maryland Libraries.  

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Meet the 2024 John S. Perkins Award Winners

The 2024 recipients of the John S. Perkins Award for Distinguished Service are Walter von Bosau, media resources coordinator, Krasker Film/Video Services, Mugar Memorial Library (from left), Daniel Ivey, program administrator, CAS Writing Program, and Richard Vezina (SPH’90), associate director of the Slone Epidemiology Center. von Bosau photo by Jackie Ricciardi, Center photo provided by Dan Ivey, Vezina photo by Cydney Scott

Winners of this year’s awards honoring staff members for exceptional service to the BU community hail from Mugar Memorial Library, the CAS Writing Program, and the Slone Epidemiology Center

Alene bouranova.

Each year, Boston University honors three non-faculty members for going above and beyond for the University. The annual John S. Perkins Awards for Distinguished Service recognize individuals “who have served the University with great distinction and have made important contributions toward the goals of Boston University.” 

This year, the honors go to Walter von Bosau , media resources coordinator, Krasker Film/Video Services at Mugar Memorial Library, Daniel Ivey, program administrator for the Arts & Sciences Writing Program, and Richard Vezina (SPH’90), associate director of the Slone Epidemiology Center.

The three will be celebrated at an evening ceremony on Tuesday, May 7, in the Metcalf Trustee Ballroom. 

The Perkins awards date back to 1981, when they were established by BU’s Faculty Council. A member of the faculty must nominate a candidate and gather three to five letters of recommendation from colleagues or students for an individual to be considered for the award. The Faculty Council reviews each nomination and selects three winners, all of whom receive $500 and a memorial plaque. The award endowment comes courtesy of the estate of the late John S. Perkins, a longtime BU faculty member, administrator, and trustee. 

“The Perkins award is the highest recognition the University bestows on the unsung heroes who consistently go above and beyond to serve the institution in their respective roles,” says Marnie Reed , a clinical professor of education at Wheelock College of Education & Human Development, chair of the Perkins Awards committee. 

Here’s a snapshot of this year’s recipients.

Walter von Bosau

Von Bosau has spent his entire BU career in one place: Mugar Memorial Library. More specifically, he’s spent almost four decades in the building’s basement, helping professors find and arrange films to show their classes as the media resources coordinator in the Krasker Film/Video Services center. 

Krasker’s sole employee, von Bosau describes himself as the “person behind the curtain” when it comes to film needs at BU. He combines an encyclopedic knowledge of movies with a love for all film formats, ranging from the Super 8 films of his childhood to his Blu-Ray collection of recent years. “I’ve been fascinated by films and filmmaking since I was five—I’m incredibly lucky that my job is also my hobby,” says von Bosau, who works on rare film preservation in his spare time.

A letter of support from Leland Monk, a College of Arts & Sciences professor emeritus of English, noted: “I knew and worked with Walter for my entire career at Boston University. He worked diligently to provide media support for my film classes across five different screening technologies: first 16 millimeter projected celluloid film, then VHS tapes, laserdisc, DVDs, and finally online streaming services. He deserves acknowledgment and appreciation for his tireless dedication to the experience of film at BU.” 

Von Bosau arrived at BU in 1986. He says being recognized with a Perkins Award after 37 years is an unbelievable honor. “In doing my job semester after semester, it’s easy for the routine to become ‘business as usual,’ von Bosau says. “It’s very humbling when so many faculty have reached out to let me know what my efforts have meant to them and their students over so long a time.”

There are endless aspects of his job that he’s enjoyed over the years, he says, from mentoring student employees to collaborating with colleagues at the CAS Geddes Language Center to track down obscure films. His current project is digitizing and saving as many of Krasker’s trove of approximately 8,000 VHS tapes as possible.

“Every film has a story to tell,” von Bosau says. “It is my goal to make sure their voices are heard for future generations.”

Daniel Ivey

As program administrator for the CAS Writing Program , Ivey has a direct hand in the education of every BU undergraduate. All undergrads, regardless of school, must take two semesters of writing seminars. Most satisfy their requirements through WR120 and WR150 courses. That’s where Ivey comes in: he’s the admin responsible for ensuring the success of the more than 350 writing seminars that CAS offers—on top of keeping the broader program running in the first place.

These are no small tasks. But they’re ones Ivey has taken great pleasure in since he took over the job in 2000, after being recruited from a role at Columbia University by the program’s inaugural director, Michael Prince. 

“Like many in the program, I enjoy promoting a relaxed and friendly work environment that values dynamic ideas and encourages collaboration, a place where constant competition and overblown egos have no place,” Ivey says. “I most enjoy helping instructors navigate the many ins and outs of BU’s vast administration. If at times they feel a bit tossed at sea, I’m there to shine a beacon and assure them that terra firma lies just ahead.”

Ivey’s keep-cool attitude and ability to keep thousands of gears turning seamlessly is what led William Giraldi (GRS’04), a CAS Writing Program master lecturer, to nominate him for a Perkins award.

“Dan is so valuable and talented that we stole him from Columbia,” Giraldi wrote in his recommendation letter. “Dan is the irreplaceable adhesive that binds us, and the force that facilitates our mission. Without him, our students would be as lost as we would be. He provides the architecture in which we and our students operate, the architecture that makes it possible for students to learn and thrive under our direction.” 

Being nominated by his peers is a testament to the “many great friends, coworkers, and colleagues I’ve had the pleasure of working with over two-plus decades at BU,” Ivey says. “I have cultivated friendships in the Writing Program that will last a lifetime. They already have!”

Richard Vezina

Associate director of the Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine’s Slone Epidemiology Center since 2017, Vezina first arrived at the center in 1991 as project manager for a clinical trial. Prior to that, he worked as a research technician at the school, starting in 1983. 

Named after its late cofounder Dennis Slone , the Slone Epidemiology Center is a public health research organization focused on studying the possible health effects of myriad elements in adults and children. In Vezina’s 30-plus-year tenure at the center, he’s been instrumental in countless research projects, including studies on the safety of ibuprofen use for children and the efficacy of the Back to Sleep campaign, an initiative aimed at reducing mortality rates from sudden infant death Syndrome (SIDS). As a brand-new administrator, Vezina was also instrumental in leading a massive restructuring effort at the center that resulted in more efficient collaboration among teams. 

Vezina says he’s proud of both his research and his administrative efforts.

“The aspects of my job that I enjoy the most stem from the close-knit family environment which we have at Slone, and being able to be a significant contributor to maintaining a culture that nurtures individual growth while working toward a common goal of making significant contributions to scientific knowledge and public health,” Vezina says.

His colleagues marvel at his vast institutional knowledge and ability to create order out of chaos. 

“There is no question that he cannot answer or find the answer to. He is our key liaison with the University Office of the General Counsel and can draft data use agreements with frightening ease,” Yvette C. Cozier (SPH’94,’04), a School of Public Health associate professor of epidemiology and associate dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion, wrote in a letter of support. “He is well-liked and respected in every circle he enters. It would be an understatement to say Rich is the MVP of Slone! The fact is, we would truly not be able to function without him.” 

Vezina says there are many highlights from his time at Slone that he treasures. Seeing his colleagues rally in support of his nomination for a Perkins Award is just the latest. 

“This recognition means the world to me,” he says.

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Alene Bouranova is a Pacific Northwest native and a BU alum (COM’16). After earning a BS in journalism, she spent four years at Boston magazine writing, copyediting, and managing production for all publications. These days, she covers campus happenings, current events, and more for BU Today . Fun fact: she’s still using her Terrier card from 2013. When she’s not writing about campus, she’s trying to lose her Terrier card so BU will give her a new one. She lives in Cambridge with her plants. Profile

Alene Bouranova can be reached at [email protected]

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MFA thesis exhibit opens May 14 at Sarah Spurgeon Gallery

May 6, 2024

Heather Johnson

Starting next week, the Sarah Spurgeon Gallery at Central Washington University will host "Anemoia," a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) thesis exhibition by Matthew Potter and Charlie Tadlock.

The opening events will take place on Tuesday, May 14, beginning with an artist talk from 4-5 p.m. in Randall Hall, room 117. The talk will be directly followed by a reception in the Sarah Spurgeon Gallery from 5-7 p.m.

Potter’s large-scale works on paper investigate memory through the viewpoint of abstraction. The surfaces develop a history within themselves as a result of repeated and densely layered applications of various media.

Memory itself is imbued in the marks. Potter’s childhood, spent constantly moving across the U.S. and Europe, is a major theme in his work. In addition to pursuing his painting degree at CWU, Potter has an artist studio with the ’57 Biscayne artist collective, located in the Good Art Building in Seattle’s Pioneer Square.

Tadlock’s lens-based media and installation works focus on the road through the rural American West. The regional identity of rugged independence has created a culture that centers around transience, and that positions prosperity and people as temporary. His artwork is held in the permanent collections of the University of Wyoming and Montana State University.

Tadlock is a two-time recipient of the CWU Behnke Graduate Fellowship and was recently awarded the Society for Photographic Education’s Innovations in Imaging Award for 2024.

The exhibit will remain on view through June 1. Sarah Spurgeon Gallery is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturdays from 1-5 p.m. The gallery is closed on Sundays and will be closed May 27 for Memorial Day.

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Argonne National Laboratory

Argonne hosts 2024 science careers in search of women event, conference gives high school girls a chance to explore scientific possibilities.

To achieve diversity and equal representation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics ( STEM ) fields, female students can be furnished with additional opportunities, experiences and resources to encourage them to pursue their interests.

To this end, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory each year hosts Science Careers in Search of Women ( SCSW ), a one-day event hosted by Argonne’s Women in Science and Technology ( WIST ) employee resource group.  SCSW offers female high school students an extraordinary opportunity to explore STEM professions and areas of interest through interaction with the laboratory’s world-class scientists and engineers. The program strives to inspire young women to pursue careers in science by bringing them into the laboratory for a day of lectures, tours, career booth exhibits, and mentoring.

During this year’s event, which took place on April 10, the students listened to a talk on cryptography and received guided tours of many of Argonne’s laboratory facilities. In the afternoon, they attended a series of panel talks, including information on chemistry and physics, computing, engineering and life sciences.

“ I think this event and this environment has made a huge impact on my view of scientists in general,” said Elise Rachoy, a senior at Lincoln-Way East High School. ​ “ As a senior going into my college career in mechanical engineering, I was nervous about potentially being the only woman in my major and not having a lot of support. At Science Careers in Search of Women, everyone is friendly and wants to get to know you, and so I feel encouraged. Argonne is a place where women are appreciated, and our thoughts and experiences are valued and appreciated equally.”

“ People at Argonne are passionate about outreach,” said Lincoln-Way East High School senior Yasmine Khativ. ​ “ You can see the diversity in action; everything is interconnected, and everyone is part of a big team.”

The goal of SCSW is to give female students the tools and confidence they need to be the leaders of tomorrow, said WIST program initiator and conference co-chair Rebecca Yassan. ​ “ We want to give students the ability to see things from a different perspective and to imagine futures for themselves that they may never have previously anticipated,” Yassan said. ​ “ I didn’t have these kinds of opportunities when I was their age, so it’s important for us to share our stories and what we do — that’s what means the most to me.”

According to conference co-chair Kathy Rusniak, being able to experience an event like SCSW can help young women develop new interests and have confidence in their own capabilities. ​ “ Here, students can see themselves in new roles with more well-defined interests,” she said. ​ “ With more information, they might gain new perspective and make it easier to see where they’re going in their futures.”

Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology by conducting leading-edge basic and applied research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne is managed by UChicago Argonne, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit https://​ener​gy​.gov/​s​c​ience .

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Thesis and Dissertation Formatting Hybrid Workshop: College of Education/Department of Psychology Session

May 22, 2024 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm, about this event.

This hybrid workshop (registrants can attend in person or online) covers the submission process for format review and demonstrates how to use the automated templates on to format MSU theses and dissertations to the requirements for students in the College of Education or Department of Psychology set forth in the Standards for Preparing Theses and Dissertations: 8th edition. These templates were designed to help an author organize and format their document with minimal effort so that their focus can be on the content of their document. Those who have already started writing or have already defended are welcome to bring their current documents (either on flash drive or email attachment) to start the process of placing their content into the template.

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