For the fourth time, Augustana College has been recognized for commitments to creating a diverse campus. On Oct. 10, 2023, Augustana received the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) award, which recognizes institutions of higher education across the country for their efforts in promoting diversity.
Lisa Durant-Jones, interim vice president for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), credited the work of Monica Smith, who recently left Augustana and whose role Durant-Jones filled.
“She made inroads in terms of how we create and address inclusivity, how we look to increase diversity, not only of our student body but also of our faculty and staff,” Durant-Jones said.
Smith worked at Augie from 2018 to 2023, supporting multiple cultural groups and LGBT+ groups on campus as well as campus as a whole, according to Durant-Jones.
“She was instrumental in conducting several campus climate surveys,” Durant-Jones said. “Then she took the results and engaged the community.”
Few schools of Augustana’s size have received the award. Schools apply in the summer, and winners are announced in the fall.
“That speaks to the sincerity of Augustana’s efforts,” Durant-Jones said. “It’s usually the very large institutions, which have lots of resources.”
“INSIGHT into Diversity,” a journal that focuses on diversity in colleges and universities, judges the applications and announces the awards. The application gathers information on a school’s demographics, graduation rates, hiring, programs and more.
This award comes during a time of increased political discussion about DEI programs. The Supreme Court recently ended affirmative action, while legacy admission faces more and more scrutiny. According to an article in the Des Moines Register, Iowa’s three public universities were ordered to stop further spending on DEI in March.
“We have our issues,” Durant-Jones said. “But I think we’re making some great headway, and we’re willing to hear from our constituents where we’re falling short.”
According to Durant-Jones, for all our differences and the challenges in understanding they might bring, we have something in common – being human.
Sophomore Sambriddhi Pandey, an international student from Nepal, works for the Office of International Student and Scholar Services (OISSS).
“We have students from over 30 countries,” Pandey said. “I have so many friends from different countries, and that’s something I love.”
As Lead Global Ambassador for OISSS, Pandey helps international students move in, adapt to America and plan social events. Taste of Latin America, for example, took place on Oct. 12 in the Gävle rooms.
“We had a bunch of Latin food, music and [we] just came together,” Pandey said.
Share the Warmth, a clothing drive that is ongoing until November, offers students a chance to donate old or otherwise unneeded winter clothes for international students.
“It’s like thrifting but within campus,” Pandey said.
Share the Warmth helps some international students prepare for winter, as traveling without a car to buy winter clothes can be a challenge and flying internationally to Augustana may limit how much a student can bring with them.
Pandey described the challenges of being away from home, but also the opportunity that her position at OISSS gives her to support people.
“Each global ambassador has around 20 to 25 international students assigned to them,” Pandey said. “I’ve had the chance to talk with each of them personally.”
