Unity Star
Distribution: All Without OPS and F
Summer 2013
Newsletter
DiversiTea Springs Again Every Spring Semester, we invite our UCF community to participate in a culturally-inspired DiversiTea event. This past semester, we had the opportunity to hear the experiences of Tiffany Greenis, Assistant Director of the Office of Student Involvement, and Delaine Priest, Associate Vice President of SDES, about their time in the African countries of Ethiopia, Uganda, and Kenya. Each experienced Africa for a different reason and personal purpose. Tiffany went as a missions participant, while Delaine went as a tour participant. Each returned home with an enriched experience, full of education, culture, and impactful memories. Thank you to our wonderful presenters, from OSI and SDES, for sharing their journeys, and for providing our attendees with a great conversation topic. We would also like to extend our gratitude to Career Services for providing and accommodating space for our au-
dience. A thank you also goes to our partners at the UCF Regional Campuses, for making the presentation available online. If you would like to view this and previous DiversiTea events online, please visit our website and click on Events.
Top: Some artifacts from Kenya, presented by Delaine Priest Middle: Tiffany Greenis spoke about Uganda and Ethiopia Bottom: Delaine Priest spoke about Kenya Photos by Dayanara Hudson
T
Director’s Corner
his has been a truly exciting year for the Office of Diversity Initiatives. We have continued to provide outstanding training opportunities, memorable Diversity Week activities, and numerous other excellent programs and services. The Office of Diversity Initiatives has contributed to UCF receiving national prestigious awards for diversity and inclusion—most notably, the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from Insight into Diversity Magazine and the Institutional Diversity Excellence Award from the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education. As we develop plans for 2013-14, and as I prepare to retire, it is only fitting that I pause and reflect on the many opportunities and challenges we faced as well as the many accomplishments we realized. Our small staff is committed to and has worked tirelessly to help UCF achieve the strategic goal of becoming more inclusive and diverse. And, there are myriads of colleagues, partners, and friends, both on campus
and throughout the region, who have contributed their time and talents to making UCF a diverse, vibrant and welcoming organization. No words can convey my sincere gratitude to all of you. Just know that I wish you well and will cherish memories of my tenure as the founding director of the UCF Office of Diversity Initiatives.