Overcoming Difference to Become A Difference-maker
Virginia Commonwealth University is committed to its mission to educate, to innovate, and to provide world-class healthcare and treatment to all who come to us. We remain steadfast in our quest to discover life-saving treatments, especially as it relates to COVID-19, a pandemic that threatens all of us. As our healthcare teams work together to […]
Ageism in the era of COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic is shining a light on a form of discrimination that has long existed but garnered little attention – ageism. Ageism, oppression based on age, has taken center stage in our current climate. Public responses to the pandemic have included sentiments that minimize the impact of the virus because it only affects the elderly as […]
Archana Pathak, Ph.D., Honored as Catalyst Award winner at Side by Side’s Springtime Gala
Archana Pathak, Ph.D., is being honored as a Catalyst Award recipient at Side by Side’s 2020 Springtime Gala. The Catalyst Awards are given to influential people, groups, and faith communities in the central Virginia region for outstanding service on behalf of Virginia’s LGBTQ+ youth. Pathak currently serves as the special assistant to the vice president of […]
The Challenge is in the Moment, The Time is Always Now
James Balwin wrote “the challenge is in the moment, the time is always now.” In this way, we must continue to make our future university “responsive to and grounded in our community-of-experience.” This requires us to “dig deep” into our past in order to view what possibilities lay ahead for us. We mustn’t shy away […]
Virginia Commonwealth University Recognized as Top College for Diversity and Diversity Champion
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) has been selected to receive the 2019 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award, with special distinction as a Diversity Champion, from INSIGHT into Diversity magazine. As a recipient of the annual HEED Award, a national honor recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion throughout their […]
Models of Inclusive Excellence
The Division for Inclusive Excellence confers the award to administrative and academic units that achieve distinction in cultivating a diverse and inclusive environment for its faculty and staff. Twenty-five major divisions and offices, colleges and schools are assessed on a biennial basis using assessment and performance data collected from multiple university sources and compiled in […]
Why academic freedom and inclusive excellence must coexist at VCU
Academic freedom is a crucial component of research and teaching in higher education. It consigns rights and responsibilities for faculty at our colleges and universities. Faculty are afforded the freedom to conduct research without concern of orthodoxy and partisanship and to teach students without undue administrative and governmental constraints. Concomitant to these rights are faculty […]
Authentic living and holistic mentorship
“I think that for iCubed, it is essential that we mentor students in life skills as well as research skills,” shares Sarah Raskin, M.P.H., Ph.D. “While skill-building is certainly part of this mentorship process – it’s essential that we mentor students in areas of professionalization as well.” Dr. Sarah Raskin joined Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) […]
VCU will open Queer Research and Advocacy Center this fall
In a project that advocates say is decades in the making, Virginia Commonwealth University will establish the Queer Research and Advocacy Center, which will be known as the Q Collective, to serve as a creative and intellectual hub in support of LGBTQIA+ artistic and scholarly activities among faculty, staff, students and the Greater Richmond community. […]