Campus to honor and welcome faculty of color
The tradition of welcoming new faculty of color and honoring faculty of color will continue on Wednesday, Feb. 18, from 5-7 p.m. in the Alumni Lounge of the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon St. The public and campus community are invited to this free event.
Co-hosted by Interim Vice Provost and Chief Diversity Officer Patrick J. Sims and Jo Ellen Fair, chair of the University Committee, the annual Faculty of Color Reception is an opportunity to welcome new faculty of color, honor newly promoted faculty of color, recognize visiting faculty of color, and network with colleagues. Provost Sarah Mangelsdorf and Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Darrell Bazzell, along with the deans of the university’s schools and colleges, will welcome and recognize faculty members.
School of Nursing Associate Professor Earlise Ward, right, talks with a student during a break teaching a section of N310: Mental Health and Mental Illness in October 2014.
“Celebrating our faculty, particularly our faculty of color, is critical and this event is just one of the ways that my office partners with deans across campus to acknowledge the vibrant and diverse campus community we are trying to build,” Sims says, adding that the celebration of diversity does not happen in isolation. “We’re encouraging faculty honorees to bring a mentor or valued colleague to this reception, as well as encourage their peers to come meet and network with faculty from other areas of campus they may not otherwise get to interact with on a regular basis.”
The event will honor 40 recently promoted faculty of color and welcome 26 new faculty of color to campus.
“We have too few occasions on campus, especially now, to celebrate our values,” says Fair. “One of the important values that binds our faculty is our common commitment to maintaining a rich, diverse array of great faculty members bringing first-class minds and boundless energy to their research, their teaching and their mentoring of students who themselves arrive on our campus from an array of communities and backgrounds.
“So please,” Fair says, “whether you are an honoree or simply a UW–Madison faculty member, staff member, student or friend who is grateful for this year’s honorees and for the values they embody, come to this year’s Faculty of Color Reception.”
