Indiana University faculty, staff, students and community members celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day with the third annual Social Justice Conference. The conference featured keynote speaker Thema Bryant, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and President of the American Psychological Association, a series of presentations and panel discussions, music provided by the African American Choral Ensemble, and the Building Bridges awards ceremony. Winner 2023 and the MLK Student Organization Scholarship.
The Building Bridges Awards recognize the individuals and organizations that Dr. Capturing King in ways big and small, right here at IU and in the communities of Indiana. One student and one additional community member (faculty, staff, local organizations, etc.) from each campus and the IU School of Medicine were recognized.
The MLK Student Organization Grant, now in its second year, provides student organizations with $500 toward programs, events, sponsorships, and efforts to support inclusion, respect for diversity, and community service. Donations went to a student organization on each campus and to the IU School of Medicine.
This year's Building Bridges Award and MLK Student Scholarship winners are:
IE Bloomington
The 2023 Building Bridges Award student winner is Yasmin Lord, Ph.D. Candidate in Anthropology. Lord is an exemplary leader both in and out of the classroom, spending much of his time discussing biological normality in the classroom, tearing down colonial structures, and affirming the idea that all humans are capable of greatness and deserve respect.
The community recipient is Kim Stewart-Brinston, MS, Senior Associate Director, Office of Admissions at IU Bloomington. There are countless examples of Kim's creativity, dedication and passion for education and commitment to diversity. Not only through her work in licensing, but also through her efforts on various boards and committees within the community.
The National Association of Student Voice Teachers receives a $500 grant from IU Bloomington. With the donation, the organization will expand the songwriters' art song repertoire into historically underrepresented genres, racial, ethnic and cultural heritages, and sexual orientations, hoping to expand the current musical canon to more accurately represent the diverse group of songwriters out there in the world. today.
IUPUI
The winner of the 2023 Building Bridges Award for IUPUI is Clara Pineda, a sophomore with a major in Global and International Studies. Pineda leads the Diversity Committee as Director of Diversity for the IUPUI Student Government and recently led the IUPUI Culture Day, which brought students, staff and faculty together for a day of celebration and cultural exploration.
The $500 IUPUI MLK Grant was awarded to the Alliance for Immigrant Justice, which ensures immigrant students' voices are heard and their needs met.
IUPUC
The 2023 Building Bridges Award student winner is Yamileth Martinez, a senior at the School of Education who completed an honors project examining how undocumented immigrants are perceived. Through this project and other anti-racism courses, he continues to develop a student office research project to better understand how discrimination based on national origin, language, and citizenship status is perpetuated.
The community recipient is Kevin Jones, Ed.D., Associate Professor of Management in the Division of Business at the IUPUC campus. Jones has dedicated decades to the legacy of Dr. King, which includes chairing a DEI subcommittee of the college board and routinely directing and contributing to various DEI initiatives and social justice programs.
LOVE, the Latin American organization for volunteers in education, receives a $500 grant from IUPUC for their continued work in the community. Its events prepare, encourage, and support members of the Latinx community to pursue higher education and advance their careers.
IU Leste
The winner of the 2023 Building Bridges Award is Ana Aquino-Rojas, a Spanish language graduate. Since her first semester at IU Este, Aquino-Rojas has been passionate about tackling inequalities in the education system. Through her involvement in service learning, she has been involved in many initiatives to promote higher education access in the local Latino community.
The fellowship recipient is Félix Burgos, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Languages and Cultures of the World. Burgos has played a key role in facilitating intercultural programming, planning events such as the Spanish Heritage Month celebrations and the annual Spanish Film Festival. As an active member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, he played a key role in the implementation of the first campus climate assessment.
Cake IE. Wayne
2023 Building Bridges Award winner Alexis Vallejo is in his final year of the Bachelor of Social Work program. Vallejo is active in the Children's Health Collaborative and has participated in I Am Health Care's intergenerational and multicultural roundtables. He also worked closely with the Community Health Fair supported by IU Fort Wayne and the Children's Health Collaborative.
Community recipient is the Ft. Wayne African American Alliance for Health Care. The Alliance's mission is to promote, support, and improve education in the African American community related to health issues and to assist in the development of individuals pursuing a career in health care.
American Dental Hygienist Association students receive a scholarship from IU Ft. Wayne MLK in the amount of $500. Dental hygiene students participate in community activities to raise awareness of good oral care and its impact on overall health. The funds will be used for a charitable project.
IU Kokomo
Alex Smith is the 2023 Building Bridges Award recipient. Smith, a sociology and psychology junior, serves as the Justice Ambassador for the Multicultural Center at IU Kokomo. Through her work as an Ambassador, Smith has shown passion and commitment to raising awareness and support for diversity, equitable inclusion and social justice at IU Kokomo and beyond.
Joint Fellow Niki Weller, Ph.D., is Associate Professor and Chair of Sociology at IU Kokomo. Weller has devoted her life's work to creating learning experiences for her students to examine, discuss, and debate how social diversity represents diverse life experiences. Additionally, Weller has been instrumental in bringing speakers to campus and organizing tours of the grounds to raise cultural awareness and combat sociocultural stereotypes.
The IUK MLK Scholarship goes to the Multicultural Center where students host an interactive question-and-answer session on Black leaders in history. The event aims to promote diversity and inclusion at IU Kokomo by increasing student knowledge and awareness of Black leadership in Indiana, the United States and internationally.
UI Noröste
Criminal Justice graduate Jackie Bell receives the 2023 Building Bridges Award. Bell is commended for working with students and staff to develop campus events and activities that raise awareness of the experiences of excluded individuals both on campus and in the community sharpen society. For example, fact sheets have been developed for events such as National Disclosure Day and the activities of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Month.
The community recipient is Monica Solinas-Saunders, Ph.D., Associate Professor at the IU Northwest School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Saunders developed the "Inside Out" prison exchange course for the reinsertion and rehabilitation of offenders. The resulting service-learning course, with an intensive writing component, still allows many SPEA students and those involved in the justice system to learn together and from one another at the Women's Community Correctional Center in Crown Point, Indiana.
IU Northwest MLK's $500 scholarship goes to the Geology Club. Students who participate in the club have strong commitments to community engagement, community service, and the promotion of sustainability and the principles of scientific knowledge.
IE South Bend
The 2023 Building Bridges Award student winner is Reagan Ayala, a junior in communications. A respected leader among her peers, Ayala was instrumental in rebuilding the Queer Straight Alliance at IU South Bend. She is described as someone who values conscientiousness and inclusion, and constantly exemplifies how to be humble, teachable, and kind to others.
Community Grantee Cynthia Murphy, B.A., B.G.S., is an Academic Success Coach at the Titan Success Center at IU South Bend. As his commissioner put it, Murphy lives his life by King's words that injustice everywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. She stands up for all students who are marginalized at work and in society. Murphy describes herself as one of the most passionate advocates for change, especially for disadvantaged students.
IU South Bend Black Student Union Receives First IU South Bend Scholarship of $500. Funds will be used this spring semester for a Black Michigan Historical Tour to show students, organization members, and community members the Underground Railroad historic sites, the burial site of Sojourner Truth, and the Assembly Hall, which hosted a speech by Booker T Washington, among other important sites.
South UI
The 2023 Building Bridges Award student winner is Sabrina Rashid, a neuroscience graduate. Rashid is known for using her leadership platforms both as a member of the Phi Sigma fraternity and as the Vice President of Student Administration to bring her classmates around the table and ensure all voices are heard on campus.
Community Scholar Nikki Green, M.S.Ed., OVW Grants Project Director at IU Southeast, demonstrates her passion for campus change through her work, which has seen her develop a strong and beneficial relationship between the campus and the Center for Women and Families. In addition, Green has scheduled several on-campus events on domestic violence prevention and healthy relationships.
Southeast IU's first scholarship of MLK$500 is awarded to the Muslim Student Union. The donation will be used to continue fostering a sense of belonging, inclusion and ownership for the growing number of Muslim students on the Southeast campus.
IU School of Medicine
The student honored with the Building Bridges Award is med student Trilliah Fazle, who has served in many leadership roles, including co-chair of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA), leading initiatives and creating spaces highlighting the work of various physicians. Students. such as the Regional Medical Education Conference and the Black History Month Lecture Series.
Francine Epperson, A.A.S., Research Outreach Specialist in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, received the IU School of Medicine's Building Bridges Community Award. Among Epperson's many achievements, she is recognized for bridging the gap between research and African American families affected by Alzheimer's disease.
The MLK Student Organization Scholarship is for the group of IUSM DEI Coalition students. This organization works to advance the IUSM's efforts to increase representative diversity, improve the academic learning environment, and provide quality education in diversity, equity, inclusion, and equity to IU medical students.
For more information or to refer someoneBridge Building Prize 2024, Visit our website. For more information on the 2024 MLK Social Justice Day Conference, visitmlk.iu.edu.