The Purdue, Texas A&M and Ohio State University veterinary colleges have been named winners of the 2017 Health Professions Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award.
The award is bestowed upon U.S. veterinary, human medicine, nursing and allied health schools that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion.
“This award makes an important statement about the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine being a place that doesn’t just talk about diversity and inclusion, but lives it,” said Purdue’s dean, Willie Reed, DVM, Ph.D., DACVP, DACVP. “This recognition identifies us as a model for the commitment, creativity and effort required for an institution to make measurable progress in being truly welcoming and supportive of everyone.”
Purdue supports diversity and inclusion through programs such as Access to Animal-Related Careers and This Is How We Role and an initiative involving the Center of Excellence for Diversity.
The HEED Award winners were selected by Insight Into Diversity, a higher education magazine focused on diversity issues. All the honorees will be featured in the magazine’s December issue.
The Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences was one of 24 university colleges honored as health professions award recipients.
Christine A. Stanley, Ph.D., former associate provost for diversity at Texas A&M, called the award “a true testament to the leadership, commitment, and accountability provided by administrators, faculty, staff and students to make the college a welcoming, thriving and inclusive place to all.”
Texas A&M supports the Council on Diversity and Professionalism and the student organization VOICE (Veterinary Students One in Culture and Ethnicity), among other diversity programs.