San Francisco: UCSF Celebrates Diversity with Free Events, Oct. 8-28

San Francisco: Series Examines Gender Controversies, Oct. 8-28

San Diego: Pulitzer Winner to Speak on Worldwide Oppression of Women, Oct. 28

January 22, 2007

UC Riverside has announced the establishment of a pilot program: The UC Riverside Diversity Internship and Leadership Training Program.

The first person chosen for the program is Dr. Adrienne Sims, Director of the UC Riverside Women's Resource Center. At the end of a six-month period, the success of the program will be evaluated before it is made a permanent feature of the University.

This pilot program grows out of the Chancellor's and Executive Vice Chancellor's commitment to improving the context of diversity within the campus community.  To assist in the effort, the Office of the Special Assistant to the Chancellor for Excellence and Diversity has created the Diversity Intern and Leadership Program. 

A new endeavor for staff, administrators and faculty, the program seeks to provide meaningful opportunities for qualified candidates to work in effecting the campus' principles and goals for its diverse students, faculty, and staff.  The program seeks to find candidates whose supervisors will be willing to release them from their work duties for one to two quarters to work in a mentorship relationship with Dr. Yolanda T. Moses, Professor of Anthropology and Special Assistant to the Chancellor for Excellence and Diversity.

In embracing the program, Dr. Sims, says that she wants to "forge relationships and foster a network of diversity services."  As the first-such diversity intern, Dr. Sims, a mid-career professional, will pair with Dr. Moses full-time. Together, they will develop opportunities that broaden Dr. Sims' knowledge and participation in ongoing and emerging diversity issues on the university campus and in the UC system as a whole. 

Through dedicated release time provided by the James Sandoval,Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, she will assist Dr. Moses between January and June in developing a student success/diversity summit, a UC-wide conference for chief diversity officers and diversity educators (to be held at UCR), a virtual diversity resource and research center, and a comprehensive UCR diversity website.  To augment her learning and experience, she will also enroll in a 10-week diversity certification program at UC Irvine. 

"This experiment would not have happened without the vision and leadership of the senior administrators here at UCR," Dr. Moses says. "Once again, UCR is on the cutting edge of institutionalizing our core value for diversity, by providing structured training opportunities for our leaders to develop the skills to work and function in an increasingly diverse work environment.  I am pleased to be a part of that work." 

Dr. Moses will report to Chancellor France A. Cordova and EVC Ellen Wartella on the success of the program at the end of the academic year.

For additional information, please contact her by email at Yolanda.moses@ucr.edu.