National Recognition of College Administrators Who Give Back to Their Campuses and Communities

Nitza Milagros Escalera, the dean of diversity initiatives at Fordham Law School, has received the 2017 Giving Back Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity and inclusion publication in higher education. The Giving Back Award, announced yesterday, honors college and university administrators who go above and beyond their everyday leadership duties and “give back” to their campuses and communities. Escalera will be featured, along with 38 other recipients, in the April 2017 Leadership Support and Giving Back issue of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine.

Giving Back Award recipients were nominated by their colleagues and selected by INSIGHT Into Diversity based on their outstanding demonstration of social responsibility; involvement with students, faculty, staff, and the community; and commitment to serving underrepresented populations. Each honoree is recognized for his or her passion, dedication, and support for diversity and inclusion.

““Nitza has long played a central role in helping ensure that Fordham Law is a warm and inclusive community,” said Dean Matthew Diller. “She is sought after by students, faculty, alumni, and administrators as a source of advice, ideas, and leadership. It is wonderful to see her get this recognition that she so richly deserves.”

INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine selected Escalera because she has been a mentor for more than a generation of students of color at Fordham Law. Her new role as Fordham Law’s first assistant dean of diversity initiatives, held in conjunction with her longtime position of assistant dean of student affairs, establishes a clear point person within the Fordham Law administration for the entire range of issues related to diversity and inclusion.

“The Giving Back Award is being awarded to leaders of institutions of higher education who exemplify what it truly means to ‘give back’ to others,” says Holly Mendelson, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. “These administrators are role models, and we honor their efforts to promote diversity and inclusion on their campuses and in their communities.”

Other recipients of the 2017 Giving Back Award include:

• Sefa Aina, Pomona College
• Philip S. Bailey, PhD, California Polytechnic State University
• Andra Basu, PhD, MEd, Lehigh Carbon Community College
• Venessa A. Brown, PhD, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Marc Burnett, Tennessee Technological University
• Marie Chisholm-Burns, PharmD, MPH, MBA, FCCP, FASHP, FAST, University of Tennessee Health Science Center
• Kathryn B. Chval, PhD, University of Missouri
• Patrick Coggins, PhD, JD, EdS, Stetson University
• Daryll Coleman, PhD, Lane College
• Deborah Deas, MD, University of California, Riverside
• Gail DePuy, PhD, University of Louisville
• William E. Easterling, PhD, The Pennsylvania State University
• Greer Glazer, RN, PhD, CNP, FAAN, University of Cincinnati
• Natalie Gibson, Kentucky Community and Technical College System
• Craig Hillemeier, MD, Penn State Health
• Lisa Kirtman, PhD, California State University, Fullerton
• Paul L. Koch, PhD, University of California, Santa Cruz
• Ming Li, EdD, Western Michigan University
• Elizabeth G. Loboa, PhD, University of Missouri
• Linda Logan, PhD, Olivet College
• Patrice Gouveia Marks, PhD, Raritan Valley Community College
• Shane P. Martin, PhD, Loyola Marymount University
• Maureen A. O'Rourke, JD, Boston University
• Rafael Ortega, MD, Boston University
• Tonantzin Oseguera, EdD, California State University, Fullerton
• Jennifer Rosato Perea, JD, DePaul University
• Clyde Wilson Pickett, MEd, Community College of Allegheny County
• Yasmin S. Purohit, PhD, Robert Morris University
• Fatima Rodriguez-Johnson, SUNY Geneseo
• Paula T. Silver, PhD, Widener University
• William Silver, PhD, Sonoma State University
• Kelli Sinclair, Waubonsee Community College
• Christina Swaidan, EdD, MEd, Westfield State University
• Charles Taber, PhD, Stony Brook University
• David E. Thomas, EdD, MEd, Community College of Philadelphia
• Gregory Townsend, MD, University of Virginia
• Roberta J. Wilburn, EdD, ThD, Whitworth University
• Victor Wilson, MEd, University of Georgia

A call for nominations for the Giving Back Award was announced in October 2016. Award recipients include administrators of both community colleges and baccalaureate-granting institutions.

For more information about the 2017 Giving Back Award and INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, visit insightintodiversity.com.