On March 9 and 10, the UT Health Science Center hosted its second Diversity Certificate Conference, which seeks to foster and sustain the diversity of its faculty, staff, students and administration through recruitment, development, support and mentorship of those groups within the entire institution.
This conference also offers an opportunity for participants to gain knowledge and understanding of current industry “best practices” in regard to diversity and inclusion that they can then implement and share.
The conference includes six core courses and three electives. The core courses included Diversity and Inclusion Literacy, Management Supervision: What’s Law Got to Do with It?, Conflict Resolution, Practicing Cultural Humility and more. The electives were offered simultaneously and were as follows:
- Star Power: Power, Leadership and Diversity
- Drop by Drop: Subtle Discrimination
- Emotional Intelligence: Emotional IQ and You
- Complaints: Informal and Formal
- Generational Diversity
- Self-Awareness: Your Johari Window at Work
- Sexual Harassment in the #MeToo Era
- Avoiding Stereotypes in the Workplace
- Safe Zones and LGBTQ
- Language Access to Healthcare: The Importance of Linguistic Competence
- The ABCs of Recruiting and Managing a Diverse Workforce
Participants also had the opportunity to attend a lunch panel discussion titled “Women in IT” featuring women information technology leaders from across the System.
Participants at this year’s conference included UTHSC faculty and staff, as well as faculty and staff from UT Knoxville, UT Martin and UT Institute for Public Service. The conference also included participants from Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and the Salvation Army, both located in Memphis.
To earn this diversity certificate, participants have to attend and participate in the core courses and electives offered, the lunch panel discussion, and take and pass the final exam. Those that passed the exam with a 75 percent or higher will receive a diversity certificate signed by UTHSC Chancellor Steve Schwab and Michael Alston, assistant vice chancellor for equity and diversity and chief diversity officer.
