The University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics has received the 2024 Inspiring Programs in Business Award from Insight Into Diversity magazine, the largest and oldest diversity and inclusion publication in higher education. The UD’s Lerner College was recognized for the work of the Lerner Diversity Council (LDC).
The Inspiring Programs in Business Award honors colleges and universities that encourage and assist students from underrepresented groups to enter the field of business. UD’s Lerner College will be featured, along with 27 other recipients, in the magazine’s April 2024 issue.
“We know that many business programs are not always recognized for their success, dedication, and mentorship for underrepresented students,” says Lenore Pearlstein, owner and publisher of Insight Into Diversity magazine. “We want to honor the schools and organizations that have created programs that inspire and encourage young people who may currently be in or are interested in a future career in business. We are proud to honor these programs as role models to other institutions of higher education and beyond.”
The Lerner College LDC is a student-staff-faculty-alumni group guiding the College’s equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives. It advocates for a culture that celebrates the shared and unique attributes of all members of the Lerner community. This is achieved through various activities on equity, diversity and inclusion topics and opportunities.
Here are some examples of the LDC’s impact since its founding:
- The LDC Lunch and Learn events and other listening forums—three events per semester where faculty, students and staff discuss issues related to equity, race, inclusion and representation.
- LDC partners with UDREAM (“U” Develop Resources for Excellence in Academic Management) to provide academic support services to Lerner undergraduate students through the Academic Coaching Program and Peer Mentoring program.
- The LDC develops programming and partners with student-run organizations that support diversity initiatives in various fields of business.
- Hiring committees for faculty, staff and administrative searches are committed to advancing diversity and inclusion and are tasked with identifying and attracting a diverse pool of candidates.
- Through the PhD Project, Lerner supports underrepresented minorities (URMs) pursuing PhDs in business disciplines.
- Lerner Career Services supports URM pairings in the Lerner Executive Mentoring Program to help students learn from professionals facing similar challenges and opportunities.
- Partnering with the Delaware LYTE (Leading Youth Through Empowerment) program to familiarize high-school students with the University and the application process.
Inspiring Programs in Business Award winners were selected by Insight Into Diversity based on efforts to inspire and encourage a new generation of young people to consider careers in business through mentoring, teaching, research, and successful programs and initiatives.
Founded by a grant from KPMG, LDC focuses on building community and college climate, transforming curricular and cocurricular activities and strengthening outreach and engagement. The LDC established subcommittees to develop goals and objectives, action plans and metrics to monitor progress on each of the core principles. The council includes faculty, staff, alumni and graduate and undergraduate students.