Carolina earns diversity award for fourth consecutive year

UNC-Chapel Hill has been named a recipient of the 2018 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education. The annual HEED Award recognizes U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion.

“The HEED Award process consists of a comprehensive and rigorous application that includes questions relating to the recruitment and retention of students and employees — and best practices for both as well as for faculty — continued leadership support for diversity, and other aspects of campus diversity and inclusion,” said Lenore Pearlstein, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. “We take a detailed approach to reviewing each application in deciding who will be named a HEED Award recipient. Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being accomplished every day across their campus.”

INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine selected UNC-Chapel Hill for its many diversity and inclusion efforts, including programs and initiatives such as the University-led Carolina Conversations series, which provides compelling dialogue and allows the free sharing of concerns by faculty, staff, and students surrounding issues of diversity and inclusion; the annual THINKposium, which focused this year on recognizing the impact of cultivating belonging in our workspaces, classrooms, and personal lives; Noteworthy Firsts Scholarships, which recognize Tar Heels who broke barriers and opened new doors at Carolina; continued outreach programs, provided by Diversity & Inclusion – including North Carolina Renaissance, Project Uplift and Achieving Carolina Excellence – that offer underrepresented high school students the opportunity to spend several days on campus to get their first experience of student life; and the Chancellor’s Science Scholars Program, which provides a pathway to success for highly capable students who aspire to become leading Ph.D. and M.D./Ph.D. scientists in an increasingly interdisciplinary world – thus, increasing diversity in the scientific community. This is the fourth consecutive year UNC-Chapel Hill has earned the HEED Award.

For more information about UNC-Chapel Hill’s diversity and inclusion initiatives, visit diversity.unc.edu.