The Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity created the DEIB-IE Champions (pronounced “deeb-ee”) in March 2023 to recognize students, student organizations, and campus & community partners who champion diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, social justice, intercultural competence and engagement, and inclusive excellence (hence the acronym DEIB-IE).
The use of “champion” – an intentional deemphasis of the term “award” – is meant to spotlight the individual/organization, their role as a champion, and their advocacy efforts.
The four DEIB-IE Champions are a:
- student;
- student organization;
- program or event; and,
- collaborative effort between students, student organizations, and/or campus & community partners.
Nominations for the DEIB-IE Champions are made by students, faculty, staff, and community partners during the spring semester using the form below. A blind review of the nominations is conducted by a committee of students, faculty, and staff. The Champions are announced during the Division of Student Affairs’ end-of-the-year awards ceremony.
About the DEIB-IE Champions
Click the appropriate accordion menu below to learn more about each champion, the eligibility requirements, and the supporting documents required to make a nomination.
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Student Champion
Description
- The DEIB-IE Student Champion is a student who embodies exemplary allyship for diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice. The Champion accomplishes this through advocacy, programming, collaboration, and education that promotes intercultural competence and engagement as well as inclusive excellence at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
Eligibility Requirements
- Must be a currently enrolled undergraduate or graduate student in good standing at UNC Pembroke.
Supporting Documents
- (Required) Brief statement (250 words or less) describing why the student should be selected as a champion.
- Evidence that demonstrates the student’s advocacy for diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
- Imagery, articles, and other awards/achievements to support the nomination.
- Letters of recommendation from students, faculty, staff, student organizations, and/or campus and community partners
Student Champions by Year
- 2024: Anesu Mavihya
- Anesu is a product of a hardworking family who relocated from Zimbabwe to the United States. As a junior majoring in political science, she has a passion for public policy and is an advocate for internationalization. Anesu is involved in various departments, clubs, programs, and groups at UNC Pembroke and volunteers in the local community. She has served as a Global Engagement Ambassador for two years and connected new and returning international students to resources. Anesu also served as president of the African Student Organization, president of the Model United Nations Club, Academic Success Mentor, senator in the Student Government Association, and Chancellor Ambassador. She has created inclusive spaces for students and, as a leader, listens to students and makes sure their voices are heard.
- 2023: Maria Lazaro
- Maria is a senior who will graduate in December 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing. She has been actively engaged in the campus community since arriving in 2019. Maria has been a contributing member of the Pembroke Activities Council, Inkwell, and Divine Dancers. She founded the Black Student Union in 2020. During the current academic year, Maria is a student associate with the Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity where she serves as the inaugural student chair of the Black History Committee. Maria also helped the Pembroke Activities Council develop programming to keep the UNCP student community engaged and together during the COVID-19 pandemic, celebrate international flavors of noodles during International Noodles Day, institute the annual Black Cultural Festival, and host a collaborative mental and sexual health awareness event with campus partners. She remains a vocal advocate for social justice, celebrating the intersectionality of identities, self-love through her poetry in Inkwell, intentional campus collaborations, and the development of events and programs that elevate and center the voices of all students.
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Student Organization Champion
Description
- The DEIB-IE Student Organization Champion is a student organization that embodies exemplary allyship for diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice. The Champion accomplishes this through advocacy, programming, collaboration, and education that promotes intercultural competence and engagement as well as inclusive excellence at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
Eligibility Requirements
- Must be a currently active student organization at UNC Pembroke.
Supporting Documents
- (Required) Brief statement (250 words or less) describing why the student organization should be selected as a champion.
- Evidence that demonstrates the organization’s implementation and coordination of an initiative or program that created/advanced/modeled diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
- Imagery, articles, and other awards/achievements to support the nomination.
- Letters of recommendation from students, faculty, staff, student organizations, and/or campus and community partners
Student Organization Champions by Year
- 2024: Beyond the Lines
- Beyond the Lines uses the media we love and enjoy in our everyday lives, such as movies, books, podcasts, and television shows, to create deep and meaningful discourse to further social justice movements, encourage critical thinking, and foster belonging. BTL creates safe spaces for students to connect and find their community while expressing varying viewpoints on diverse topics. The organization embodies the values of allyship, diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice through listening and taking action. BTL discussed K-pop and beauty standards, Native American representation in film, romance book tropes and healthy relationships, and much more. They also collaborated with committees, departments, and student organizations to draw in multiple voices, including the Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity’s Gender Equity & Inclusion Committee and Neurodiversity & Disability Committee. BTL also hosted a Silent Reading Party in conjunction with the Livermore Library and facilitated a workshop – both during the 2024 JusticeCon.
- 2023: Omicron Lambda Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
- The AKAs are an active, integral, and engaged member of the UNC Pembroke community by attending leadership training, volunteering on campus and in the community, and creating collaborative programming. The sorority’s mission is to be of service to the community. During the 2022-23 academic year, the sorors volunteered at UNC Pembroke’s Care Resource Center, Helping The Orphans Thrift Store, and Odum Home - both located in Pembroke, and the Lumberton Christian Care Center and Chestnut Street United Methodist Church - both in Lumberton. They also collaborated with many diverse student organizations to host numerous campus events. They partnered with the Student Government Association to host a dinner with SGA candidates. Other events included collaboration with Alpha Pi Omega Sorority to host These Hands Do Not Haze, Gamma Sigma Sigma Sorority to host a highway clean up, and Kappa Delta Sorority to host Sharing Love and Sending Love on Valentine’s Day. The chapter prides itself in sponsoring and co-sponsoring well-rounded, engaging, and meaningful programming that empowers families, builds economic wealth, enhances the natural environment, advocates for social justice, and uplifts local communities.
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Program Champion
Description
- The DEIB-IE Program Champion is a program or event that demonstrates exemplary allyship and a significant impact in advocating for, educating, and/or celebrating diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice while promoting intercultural competence and engagement as well as inclusive excellence at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
Eligibility Requirements
- Must be sponsored or co-sponsored by a UNC Pembroke student or student organization.
- Program must be held during the academic year in which the nomination is made.
Supporting Documents
- (Required) Brief statement (250 words or less) describing why the program should be selected as a champion.
- Evidence that demonstrates how the program advocated for diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
- Imagery, articles, and other awards/achievements to support the nomination.
- Letters of recommendation from students, faculty, staff, student organizations, and/or campus and community partners
Program Champions by Year
- 2024: 2023 Black and Gold Block Party
- The 2023 Black and Gold Block Party, sponsored by Campus Engagement & Leadership, Global Engagement, and Student Inclusion & Diversity, was instituted to celebrate the rich tapestry of culture at UNC Pembroke. Held September 15, 2023, during Parent and Family Weekend, the event featured students from different races, ethnicities, backgrounds, and traditions who shared and showcased their unique and rich heritage through music, dance, art, games and a fashion show. The event’s main feature was the fashion show. During the show, attendees had a chance to view traditional clothing and listen to music from various cultural communities around the globe. The highlighted regions were Africa, the Americas and the Caribbean, and Asia. A different student served as MC for each region. Henna tattoos were provided by the Art Club, snacks from Korea, Japan, Africa, and the United States were available to sample, and attendees could play games on the lawn.
- 2023: 2023 BraveNation Powwow and Gathering
- The 2023 BraveNation Powwow and Gathering, coordinated by the Native American Student Organization and the Curt & Catherine Locklear American Indian Heritage Center, is a social and cultural event that brings American Indian peoples and the UNC Pembroke community together to celebrate Indigenous histories and cultures through dance, food, and art. Held annually in March, the powwow demonstrates UNC Pembroke’s commitment to its historical mission of service to the Lumbee and other American Indian peoples in North Carolina and beyond. The powwow also showcases UNC Pembroke’s tribal diversity and promotes the success of American Indian students by creating an on-campus community, increasing their affinity for the university, and contributes to improving their academic success through cultural engagement. The event also provides an opportunity for the UNC Pembroke community to learn more about and engage with the region’s rich Indigenous histories and cultures. The BraveNation Powwow and Gathering is the largest college powwow in the state of North Carolina. The 2023 powwow had more than 2,200 attendees, over 120 dancers, 7 drum groups, and 52 food and art vendors. The event was a beautiful showcase of the tribal diversity at UNC Pembroke and across the southeastern United States.
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Collaboration Champion
Description
- The DEIB-IE Collaboration Champion embodies an exemplary collaborative effort led by students or student organizations in partnership with other students, student organizations, and/or campus & community partners to promote and/or advocate for diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice. The Champion makes a significant impact through collaboration to promote, educate, and/or celebrate intercultural competence and engagement as well as inclusive excellence at UNC Pembroke and/or in the community.
Eligibility Requirements
- Must be a student-led collaboration between students, student organizations, or campus and/or community partners.
- Collaborative effort must occur during the academic year in which the nomination is made.
Supporting Documents
- (Required) Brief statement (250 words or less) describing why the collaboration should be selected as a champion.
- Evidence that demonstrates how the collaboration promoted and advanced diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice at UNC Pembroke and/or the community.
- Imagery, articles, and other awards/achievements to support the nomination.
- Letters of recommendation from students, faculty, staff, student organizations, and/or campus and community partners
Collaboration Champions by Year
- 2024: Muslim Student Association and Global Engagement
- Held during International Education Week in November 2023, the Muslim Student Association and Global Engagement collaborated to host the Indoor Cultural Bazaar Fest. The event was a vibrant celebration of cultural diversity, featuring crafts, artifacts, food, and performances that represented the unique and diverse cultures of UNC Pembroke’s student communities. Multiple student organizations representing UNC Pembroke’s diverse student body tabled and performed during the event.
- 2023: Black Student Union and Spectrum
- In February 2023, the Black Student Union and Spectrum collaborated to host the program “Queer Conversation: A Roundtable Highlighting Black LGBTQ+ Voices on Campus” as a space for Black queer students and allies to share their experiences, find common ground, and provide support for their peers. The collaboration between the Black Student Union and Spectrum serves as a model for developing intercultural competence through an intersectional lens that is based in intentionality, teamwork, and community building.
Nomination Form
Complete the nomination form below by Monday, March 18, 2024 (5 p.m.) to submit a nomination for a DEIB-IE Champion.