2001 Diversity Enhancement Awards

By Susan Wittstock

The Distinguished Diversity Enhancement Awards recognize extraordinary efforts of individuals or groups to widen opportunities and programs for minority groups. The program, now in its 19th year, rewards significant commitment to supporting women, minorities, Vietnam-era veterans, disabled veterans, people with disabilities and a deeper diversity -- one that encompasses differences in experiences.

Recipients were honored at a reception May 22, where they received a plaque and a $1,200 honorarium. The University Senate Committee on Diversity sponsors the awards program in cooperation with the Office of Human Resources.

Adrienne M. Adams student, human development and family science

Adams may be a student, but she could teach others a thing or two about diversity. Adams is known for being a self-starter who has a special motivation for diversity projects. Through her involvement in the Minority Students in Human Ecology organization, Adams organized a minority job fair that attracted 20 companies. She has worked the annual walk-a-thon and telethon of the United Negro College Fund since 1989, volunteered in the Weinland Park Elementary School and neighborhood through the Minority Leadership Program and the Human Ecology and Lowe's Home Improvement partnership, and has served as a mentor in the South High School Mentoring Program and for the Office of Minority Affairs. She is praised for being intelligent, articulate and focused -- not to mention nice, as one nominator wrote:"Adrienne's bubbly personality and work ethics make her a joy to be around."

Brenda Jo Brueggemann associate professor of English

Her scholarship in deaf/disability studies has won Brueggemann many accolades, but her dedication to diversity issues is more than cerebral."Much to her credit, Professor Brueggemann has gone well beyond scholarship to provide almost a decade of service to the University, to her professional community, and to the community at large," wrote one nominator. Brueggemann has developed courses in disability studies, organized and served as presenter for workshops and colloquia on deafness and other disabilities in the classroom, and has served as chair of the College of Humanities Diversity Committee and as faculty adviser for Students for Disability Awareness. She coordinated a national interdisciplinary colloquium in 1998 on"Enabling the Humanities," has served as co-chair of the Modern Language Association Committee on Disability Issues in the Profession and is a trustee for the Central Ohio Deaf Services Center. Brueggemann is acknowledged as a role model and mentor who has brought"Ôreal life' changes to the lives of students with disabilities."

Raul Herrera associate professor of civil and environmental engineering and geodetic science

Herrera is known for his warm, effusive personality and dedication to the Latino/a community at Ohio State."We in the Latin community know of the extensive efforts he has exerted over the years to make welcome, mentor and nurture new faculty and students from all over the Spanish speaking world irrespective of gender, color or class," wrote a nominator. Herrera has helped to form and advise numerous groups, including Folclor Hispano/Canto Latino and organizations for Hispanic graduate, engineering and architecture students and for faculty and staff. Herrera is regularly appointed as a member of search committees for administrators, lending a Latino perspective to the decision-making process."It is not an understatement to say that Dr. Herrera's presence and fortitude has been the glue that has held the Latino community together at Ohio State University," wrote one nominator."He in many ways is a'founding father' of diversity or our'padrino,' as we call him."

Growing Our Own Program Marion campus and city schools

Front row: Kay Brown, Kathleen Clemens and Shawn Jackson. Back row: Leslie Beyer, Tara Deyer, Larry Prude and Dan Christie.

The goal of recruiting and retaining minority teachers is at the heart of the"Growing Our Own" program, a collaborative effort that began in 1998 between the Marion City Schools and Ohio State -- Marion. Participants are selected during high school, paired with minority professional mentors in the Marion city schools and student mentors in the Master of Education program, and attend monthly meetings to assess their progress. Successful participants will receive full scholarships to the M.Ed. program at Ohio State -- Marion and are guaranteed teaching positions with the Marion City School System at the completion of the master's degree. The program is showing results: 13 minority students matriculated to college in 1999 in a district where the dropout rate for male students has been as high as 70 percent. The program has grown from seven participants to 28. An Ohio State student majoring in education credits the program with helping her get to college:"The Growing Our Own Program gave me a chance to further my education as well as make an impact on my community. If I were not in the Growing Our Own Program, I could not do what I am doing now."

Allen P. Zimmerman associate professor of engineering technology and technical physics, Agricultural Technical Institute

Zimmerman has taken significant steps to raise awareness about diversity issues on the campus of the Agricultural Technical Institute in Wooster. He has become an expert on introducing students to the tenets of diversity, individual differences and human dignity. He helped develop an orientation course for all ATI students that covers these issues, as well as a capstone course for engineering technology majors that emphasizes diversity."Wherever he is, whether it is in the classroom, in a meeting, or in our student lounge, Allen is an advocate of people's rights," wrote a nominator. When he began teaching technical math, he was troubled by the usage of all male names and pronouns in the in-house text used, so he co-authored a new, more inclusive text. He has shared his techniques and philosophies through journal publications and national and international presentations, and has been recognized with several prominent national awards for his scholarship and teaching."Allen not only espouses diversity, he also lives his beliefs," wrote one nominator.

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