Diversity Is Important to UNCG. and People Are Taking Notice

Diversity distinction

Diversity is important to UNCG. And people are taking notice.

The university and one of its education faculty members, Dr. Charles P. Gause, were recognized in September by a national organization for work in advancing equity and diversity on the campus.

Gause received the National Faculty Mentor Role Model of the Year Award at the 10th National Role Models Conference. The conference was organized by Minority Access Inc, a non-profit firm, with support from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. His award was inscribed “For Guiding, Mentoring and Leading Others.”

The university was recognized for a second year, receiving a citation for its campus efforts in diversity and inclusivity, including the UNCG Inclusive Community Task Force, which Gause co-chairs with Dr. Susan Dennison. He and UNCG Vice Provost Alan Boyette were recognized as Minority Access Role Models.

“This recognition affirms our ongoing commitment to diversity at UNCG,” said Provost David H. Perrin. “We want to make diversity part of UNCG's core academic mission, and are seeking to foster an inclusive environment for all students, staff, and faculty regardless of race, ethnicity.”

Gause, a former teacher and school administrator, is an associate professor of educational leadership in the School of Education. He is author of the book, “Integration Matters: Navigating Identity, Culture and Resistance,” which was published in 2008.

Earlier in September, Dr. Robert Mayo, chair of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, was named a Diversity Champion by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.

Over the past two decades, Mayo has mentored more than 200 students of color in the fields of communication sciences and disorders, allied health, medicine, dentistry and the arts.

“I have worked with Robert Mayo at two universities, for a total of almost 20 years, and I continue to learn from him and admire him in his mentoring of students,” said Celia Hooper, dean of the School of Health and Human Performance, who also worked with Mayo at UNC Chapel Hill. “He helps them learn the culture of the university and how to negotiate academic waters. He has a special passion for those who are underrepresented and helps them with dedication and humor.

“Robert is in his sixth year at UNCG, and it is no accident that the student body in our Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders is among the most diverse in the country. Robert Mayo has helped make that possible, one student at a time.”

In 2004, Mayo developed the Research Mentoring Program, an inter-institutional initiative between UNCG and two historically black colleges and universities with the goal of enhancing opportunities for students of color to gain admission to graduate and professional school.

Last academic year, he encouraged five undergraduates and six graduate students to submit papers for the 2009 National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing convention in Atlanta. All 11 students presented at the convention; two received awards for their scholarship.