Office of Diversity Initiatives
| Greetings, I am pleased to greet you as the newly appointed Director of Diversity Initiatives for the Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine. I would like to share with you some of the goals and plans for this new office, which will help our School address issues of diversity, intercultural communication, and inclusiveness that are at the forefront of higher education. Potential employers, alumni and even parents are asking institutions to do more to increase students’ knowledge of issues pertaining to a diverse society, and to enable them to thrive in an inclusive environment. Purdue University has responded to these requests by offering its students many opportunities to explore these issues through curricular and co-curricular activities. Purdue even has adopted a comprehensive plan for educational equity, entitled "Toward a Mosaic for Educational Equity - A Purdue Vision and Action Plan." This plan may be viewed on the web at http://www.purdue.edu/provost/shtml/mosaic.shtml The over-arching goal of the veterinary school’s Office of Diversity Initiatives is to provide leadership for a multilayered response to diversity issues specific to the veterinary medical profession. These issues include recruiting and retaining a diverse group of faculty, staff and students, and providing our students with opportunities to increase their intercultural competencies. This approach is vital to the success of our future graduates who will practice in a veterinary medical marketplace that is increasingly multicultural and global. During the coming months, we will incorporate these concepts into our School’s diversity plan, which will reflect the unique needs of our constituents and the veterinary medical profession as a whole. I welcome your thoughts and suggestions! You can reach me at cipriank@purdue.edu or (765) 496-1940. |
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