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Six representatives from ������ will attend the Faculty Women of Color Academy (FCWA) annual conference April 11 to 14. They will join hundreds of other women from academic institutions across the United States.

The conference provides opportunities for Indigenous and women of color in higher education to network and learn from the work of their peers through workshops, poster presentations and speakers addressing topics related to DEIA and leadership planning. Talks and workshops are designed to encourage professional development, career advancement, personal well-being and scholar activism. Hosted by Virginia Tech, the conference takes place in Arlington, Virginia. Attendance is coordinated by the Office of Strategic Initiatives under the leadership of Associate Provost Marcelle Haddix, a former member of the FWCA national advisory board. The University is a gold sponsor of the 2024 event.

Attending this year are:

• , associate dean for research, ;
• , director of diversity and inclusive excellence, ;
• , assistant teaching professor, and co-director, Fashion and Beauty Communications Milestone;
• , faculty fellow, and the Office of Academic Affairs; and teaching professor, ;
• , assistant professor of public health, ; and
• , assistant professor, ; co-founder, ; and executive director, .

Meléndez says the conference is focused on research, writing and literature and is “characterized by a true spirit of camaraderie and support across identity, across discipline and across the different roles that women play on campuses. It’s a fortifying and fulfilling experience and fertile ground where you can grow as a professional. It is an especially important experience in these times of challenges for higher education and for society.”

Among the conference attendees are leading professional educators, authors and researchers. They include Stephanie Adams of the University of Texas, Dallas, editor of “Dear Department Chair: Letters from Black Women Leaders to the Next Generation,” and Victoria Reyes of the University of California-Riverside, author of “Academic Outsider: Stories of Exclusion and Hope.”

Keynote speakers are Menah Pratt, vice president for strategic affairs and diversity and professor of education at Virginia Tech; Cherrie Moraga, a writer, scholar feminist and professor from the University of California, Santa Barbara; and Gabrielle Tayac, associate professor of public history at George Mason University.

A panel discussion, “Pathways to Leadership,” will include Miriam Lam, vice chancellor for diversity, equity and inclusion and chief diversity officer at the University of California, Riverside; Javaune Adams-Gaston, president of Norfolk State University; and Mari Castañeda, dean of the Commonwealth Honors College and professor of communication at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.