UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State academic administrators, staff and students received Way Paver Awards from the Council of College Multicultural Leadership during a special ceremony held on April 5 at the Nittany Lion Inn.
The Way Paver Awards honor "those who have demonstrated extraordinary commitment to diversity and the creation of an inclusive community; positively enhanced student life and the climate throughout the University and local community; and motivated others through their leadership and impeccable character,” and have been given annually since 2011 by the Council of College Multicultural Leadership (CCML).
This year’s recipients include:
- Lydia Abdullah, director for diversity & inclusion, Center for Business and Finance
- Judy Albin, senior associate director, union & student activities
- Eric J. Barron, president, Penn State
- Blannie Bowen, vice provost for academic affairs, Penn State
- Elizabeth Goreham, mayor, State College Borough
- L. Steve Hayes, assistant director of human resources (ret.), Penn State
- Pat Hayes, assistant director of diversity programs, Penn State Applied Research Lab
- Melissa Landrau Vega, assistant director, Multicultural Resource Center
- Ken Lehrman, vice provost for affirmative action, Penn State
- Hank McCoullum, assistant dean for science diversity initiatives, Eberly College of Science
- Sherren McKenzie, sales and development accounting coordinator (ret.), Center for the Performing Arts
- Melanie McReynolds, Sloan Scholar and doctoral candidate in biochemistry, microbiology and molecular biology
- Curtis Price, assistant director, Upward Bound Migrant Program
- Natalia Rojas-Valois, bachelor’s degree student, College of Health and Human Development
- Joseph Selden, assistant dean for multicultural affairs, College of Communications
- Debra Simpson-Buchanan, counselor, Multicultural Resource Center
- Allison Subasic, immediate past director, LGBTQA Student Resource Center
- Barbara Thompson, director for multicultural recruitment and community affairs, Penn State Harrisburg
- Edgar Yoder, professor of agricultural and extension education, College of Agricultural Sciences
The CCML consists of academic college multicultural directors and deans at University Park. Its members develop their respective units' strategic diversity plans, and assist in the implementation and review of the University's "Framework to Foster Diversity." This academic year, the co-chairs of CCML are Stephanie Danette Preston, senior director for the office of graduate educational equity programs in the Graduate School, and Wayne Gersie, director of the multicultural engineering program in the College of Engineering.
More information, including a list of previous Way Paver Award winners, is available at http://sites.psu.edu/ccml/sample-page/info/way-paver-awards.