UNL Diversity and Inclusion

Cece Villa, a Husker soccer student-athlete and senior nutrition, exercise and health science major from Altoona, Iowa, is serving as a role model and advocating for others on and off the field⚽️

“If you are passionate about it, get involved. If you don’t know your passions yet, join a bunch of groups, make friends and learn. That's how I found my passion. I got involved and found out that I wanted to work in diversity and inclusion.”

Learn more about Cece at https://go.unl.edu/cece-villa

Kiley Pham, a senior civil engineering major from Lincoln, is growing her mentoring skills and making campus a more welcoming place through her campus involvements and internships. Learn more about Kiley at https://go.unl.edu/kiley-pham1

The Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Native American Coalition have launched a new website providing business development aid for Indigenous entrepreneurs. The website provides support and resources for Native food producers interested in expanding the reach of their business.

Learn more at https://go.unl.edu/indigenous-entrepreneurs

For many first-year Huskers and their families, New Student Enrollment is a time to ask questions, ease concerns and get to know campus. For Michelle Garcia-Barillas and her family, the ability to do so in Spanish helped them feel like the University of Nebraska–Lincoln was the right choice.

https://go.unl.edu/michelle-garcia

Ritsa Giannakas began making an impact on the campus community before she was even a student when, at 13, she started an emergency fund for students in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. Now, Ritsa, a senior political science and economics major, continues to make impacts through work with the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska, as a mentor and in her research.

You started an emergency fund for CASNR students when you were 13. What sparked that for you?
"I don’t know the exact moment that I became aware of just how much inequality there existed in the world, but what I can tell you is that I was getting into arguments advocating for universal health care since I was in fifth grade. I have always strongly held values of equity and helping others, something that was definitely passed down to me by my parents, family members, and community."

Learn more at go.unl.edu/ritsa-giannakas

Diversifying and increasing the number of individuals becoming and remaining teachers in Nebraska and Kansas is the focus of a new three-year project, Project RAÍCES — Re-envisioning Action and Innovation through Community Collaborations for Equity across Systems. Project RAÍCES leverages the strengths of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s College of Education and Human Sciences and Kansas State University’s Center for Intercultural and Multilingual Advocacy.

Learn more at http://go.unl.edu/Project-RAICES

🎉We are thrilled to share Dr. Marco Barker, vice chancellor of diversity and inclusion is among six national leaders elected to serve on the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) board of directors. AAC&U is dedicated to advancing the purposes of higher education by promoting equity, innovation, and excellence. Learn more at https://go.unl.edu/barker-aacu

Instructional designers at UNL’s Center for Transformative Teaching want to make accessibility more accessible.

“We can help this whole group of students be much more successful if we just make courses more accessible to them and work to fit their needs,” said Ash Mitchell, an instructional designer who worked on the project. “If instructors are thinking about accessibility upfront as they are designing courses, then there aren’t as many students falling through the cracks.

Learn more at go.unl.edu/accessibility-ctt

Congratulations to Jerri Harner, executive specialist to the vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion, for being selected as one of the 2024 Women of Courage, Character and Commitment. We applaud your exceptional achievements and unwavering dedication. Your positive contributions to both the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the university are truly commendable, and we are grateful for your inspiring leadership.

Meet the 2024 Women of Courage, Character, and Commitment Award at go.unl.edu/women-courage

The College of Law’s Black Law Student Association was reactivated in 2022 with the goal of providing support to Black law students while creating educational opportunities for the entire student body.

Lionel D’Almeida is the current BLSA vice president and was one of the students who worked to reactivate the chapter. In their first year as law students, D’Almeida and his fellow executive team members saw a need for more open discussions on the impact of race and ethnicity in the context of the cases they were studying. This led them to the idea of creating a space specifically for Black law students to connect.

“It was important to give Black law students an organization that they know will champion them, especially given the low percentage of Black lawyers,” he said.

Learn more at https://go.unl.edu/lionel-dalmeida

For Dinushi Jayasekara and many others in the William H. Thompson Scholars Learning Community, their first-year peer mentor groups offer an instant sense of belonging that helps smooth the sometimes-rocky transition into college.

“One piece of advice my mentor gave me that really stuck with me was telling me that I’m not always going to get it right,” Dinushi remembered. “I was really scared for my first midterms, but my mentor helped me realize that it’s okay if I make mistakes as long as I learn from them.”

Learn more at go.unl.edu/dinushi-jayasekara

Congratulations to Roxana Rodriguez, a junior advertising and public relations major from Wood River, Nebraska, won the top prize in the 2024 Philip Perry Photojournalism Challenge for her essay “402: Hispanic Businesses Growing the Nebraskan Economy and Culture.” Rodriguez will receive a $7,000 scholarship to complete her studies at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Additionally, a special congrats to second place winner, Jazlynn Sanders, and third place winner, Leah Bryan.

Learn more at https://go.unl.edu/roxana-rodriguez