Annual awards luncheon salutes advancement in diversity and inclusion initiatives, Indiana University Vice-President for Regional Campuses and Online Education Ken Iwama to Serve as Keynote Speaker
The Urban League of Northwest Indiana will host its Diversity and Inclusion Luncheon on Thursday, November 7th at the Avalon Manor in Merrillville, IND from 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Now in its 12th year, this event highlights the important work of the Urban League of Northwest Indiana in the arena of Diversity and Inclusion. Team members regularly conduct DEI training and outreach in Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties.
The D & I luncheon provides a platform to acknowledge the contributions made by businesses, non-profit organizations, civic organizations, educational institutions, and individuals that have demonstrated advocacy for diversity and inclusion through programs and initiatives in communities across Northwest Indiana.
Indiana University Vice-President for Regional Campuses and Online Education Ken Iwama will deliver the keynote address. Iwama assumed his new role with Indiana University on July 1. During his tenure at IU Northwest, he helped the campus cultivate an environment that supports academic and programmatic funding leading to a surge in regional campus grant activity and awards.
He also worked with a team to collaborate on data-based strategies and empowered the campus efforts to gradually stabilize post-pandemic enrollment declines. Under Iwama's leadership, the campus achieved an increase in first-year undergraduate students in the fall of 2023 and the highest number of new applications and admitted students in over a decade. His address will highlight the importance of and strides made in diversity and inclusion in higher education.
With a steady crusade to provide African Americans fair and equitable access to employment and educational opportunities, the Urban League of NWI is in its 79th year of service and staying true to its mission.
"It is important to remind everyone that Diversity and Inclusion are not just buzzwords," said Urban League of NWI President and CEO Dr. Vanessa Allen-McCloud. "Through our programs and services, we are committed to developing real-life, workplace environments that are welcoming, equitable, diverse and inclusive. It is always an honor to recognize individuals and entities that are doing the same."
This year's honorees are as follows:
- Community Award - Women's Care Center
- Leadership - Project Neighbors
- Workforce Diversity - Hilltop House
- Youth - Junior Achievement
- Moving the Needle - Hard Rock Casino of Northern Indiana
- Minority Business - The Blind Social Center
- Lifetime Achievement - Dr. Ed Williams
Tickets to the luncheon and sponsorship opportunities are now available. For more information, call 219-887-9621 or visit www.ulofnwi.org.
