Nebraska Wesleyan University students, faculty and staff who champion diversity and inclusion have been recognized for their dedication to the campus community.

The Advocate for Diversity Award honors individuals who raise awareness about a need, problem, or opportunity regarding issues of diversity and inclusion on campus. Winners should inspire others with their advocacy to ensure that all students, staff and faculty feel welcome, engaged, and empowered.

• Faculty Award: Dr. Angela McKinney
  • McKinney’s nominator shared that she is the heart and soul of the Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (L-SAMP). Her enthusiasm for students helped inspire them to continue in the STEM field and helped almost 60 students to graduate from NWU. She is also the campus director for the HHMI IE3 grant for ‘Building institutional capacity for student belonging,’ a grant that focuses on neurodiversity and includes faculty and student workshops and a mentorship program.
• Staff Award: Raisa Gallegos
  • Gallegos’s nominator said she has been raising awareness of food and resource insecurity on campus. She opened a food and hygiene pantry in her office in the Johnson Residence Hall. As a Prairie Wolf Pantry Board member, she created a partnership between the pantry and residential education staff to help increase the availability of resources. 
• Student Award: Amarachi Chidi-Uneze
  • Chidi-Uneze’s nominator shared that she is a reliable and confident student leader on campus. She is a representative of many diverse student organizations and is a peer assistant in the Residential Education program. She has a sensitive and inclusive approach to building community amongst her peers. She is an advocate for her peers.

Mary Butler Award recognizes a junior or senior in good academic standing who identifies as a student of color. Nominees should exude an enthusiasm to serve both the NWU and Lincoln communities and should be sensitive to and knowledgeable about campus needs. They demonstrate the ability to enrich the campus through extracurricular involvement.

• Award: Aliah Clarke
  • Clarke’s nominator said Clarke’s commitment to the volleyball and track programs have contributed to their success and culture.  She’s shown enthusiasm for serving NWU and local community through a pair of cancer awareness events. She has also made an impact in young athletes in the Lincoln area through her work as a youth leader in volleyball summer camps and club tournaments.  She is active in several campus organizations including being the president of the Black Student Union.