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YSU Diversity Leadership Dinner acknowledges contributors
YOUNGSTOWN
Students and faculty from Youngstown State University were honored for their contributions to diversity and inclusion in the Youngstown community at the Diversity Leadership Recognition Dinner at Stambaugh Auditorium.
Bryan Bautista, a semifinalist on NBC’s “The Voice: Season 10,” spoke and performed at Thursday night’s affair.
Karen Larwin, an associate professor in YSU’s educational foundations department, was recognized for her campus leadership. Larwin works with the Ohio Commission on Minority Health and has incorporated real-world examples from the commission’s work in her teaching at the university.
Jaietta Jackson, a communications instructor at YSU, also was honored for her leadership. She teaches multiculturalism and intercultural communication at the university and works with multicultural groups – such as the Youngstown Think Tank and the Minority Alumni Council at Cardinal Mooney High School – throughout the city.
Jackson said she appreciates the acknowledgement, but said her hard work was a result of her deep passion for promoting cultural understanding and diversity, and that she didn’t work for the accolades.
Larwin was similarly humble, saying she never thought she’d receive any kind of formal award for her work. She said she teared up when she received the letter informing her that she’d been selected for recognition. She said she did her work because people in the region are suffering. Larwin is working on combating Youngstown’s infant-mortality rate, which is among the highest in the country.
Three students – Dia Scruggs, Ramona Kindell and Kaitlyn McClendon – received the diversity leadership scholarship, granting them funding toward their tuition during the next school year.
Sylvia J. Imler, associate vice president of multicultural affairs and the event’s coordinator, guided the dinner and introduced the recipients of the awards and a number of speakers throughout the evening. She also was responsible for reaching out to Bautista, who had no other connection to the region.
Bautista, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., said when Imler contacted him and described the event as a celebration of culture, he felt compelled to attend, citing his own cultural upbringing as a major contributor to his success as a musician. The dinner was Bautista’s first as a speaker and performer.
Imler said the dinner’s theme was “culture,” shaping the evening around a diverse group of speakers.
“Regardless of our differences and similarities, we all want to be valued, important and appreciated,” Imler said.