Annual Inclusive Excellence Faculty Fellow Awards Reception

On the evening of Wednesday, October 13, 2021, at the Peggy Lee Hahn Garden Pavilion, members of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Inclusive Excellence (IE) team at Virginia Tech met to recognize the most recent Faculty Fellows for the project and to celebrate their amazing diversity, inclusion, equity, and belonging (DIEB) work.

The COVID-19 pandemic changed many things about how we all live and how the university operates. The annual reception to honor that year’s Faculty Fellow was no exception to this. The reception for the 2020 IE Faculty Fellow, Sarah Karpanty, Ph.D., Professor – Fish and Wildlife Conservation, sadly could not happen while following public health safety guidelines. However, that did not stop Dr. Karpanty’s wonderful efforts to drive efforts to make DIEB a major focus at an institutional level here at Virginia Tech. Her work has focused on faculty recognition for DIEB work including tenure and promotion guidelines

Megan “Meg” Emori, Ph.D., Instructor – Biological Sciences, is the 2021 IE Faculty Fellow. Dr. Emori is very passionate about DEIB work and she utilizes a DEIB centered approach in and out of the classroom. We are so thankful for her efforts to help institutionalize DEIB as a fundamental part of all university operations. Dr. Emori’s will be working across the College of Science to help faculty connect their students and themselves with the host of DEIB resources available, and to identify outstanding needs in services and support.

The event, catered by Chanticleer Catering, provided the HHMI IE Faculty at Virginia Tech the opportunity to get together, in-person, to honor both Sarah and Meg as the 2020 and 2021 IE Faculty Fellows. We are so proud of their continued efforts, and we are beyond thankful to have them, and their passion for DEIB, on the HHMI IE at Virginia Tech team.