Strong support for successful programs and an openness to voices from the campus community helped Adelphi become one of just 10 universities out of approximately 200 in New York state to earn a 2024 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity.

This October, INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine again announced that Adelphi was the recipient of a HEED Award, given annually to fewer than 120 colleges and universities across the country that "demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging." This is the seventh year in a row that the University has received the honor.

What accounts for a string of successes that stretches back to 2018?

"We listen to the members of our community," answered Chotsani Williams West, MA '07, EdD, assistant vice president of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB). "We've been so intentional about our signature programs and are always working to grow and enhance them in response to the feedback we receive."

An Evolving Mentoring Program Helps Eliminate the Achievement Gap

One of those signature initiatives is Adelphi's Jovia Mentoring Program, which offers one-to-one guidance from trained faculty and staff mentors. Designed to support lasting success for first-generation college students, LGBTQIA+ students, veterans and active military, and students of color, it is open to all students.

"We hold exit interviews with all graduating student mentees, and what we found was that they often wished they'd had more group opportunities to meet with others in the mentoring network," said Dr. West, who created and launched Adelphi's Mentoring Program in 2014. "So we expanded the meetings and events we have each year beyond the annual get-togethers or during National Mentoring Month, giving our students more and more time with one another and access to other mentors."

The program, which helped colleges and schools across the Adelphi campus form their own mentoring programs, has helped the University eliminate the achievement gap traditionally seen in higher education. The retention rates of students of color at Adelphi has been virtually identical to that of white students for the past two years.

A Multicultural Center as a Place of Belonging

Dr. West points to the opening of the Multicultural Center in Fall 2022 as another example of the Adelphi's intentional approach.

"We discussed opening a center for a number of years, weighing the pros and cons and asking what the benefits would be," she said. "Then we started hearing terms like 'belonging' from across the DEIB landscape at the same time our students were telling us they wanted a place to connect that reflects who they are. By the time colleges around the country began considering multicultural centers after 2020, we were already there. We just needed to move forward."

Designing the center was a collaborative effort.

"We made sure to include student voices," Dr. West explained. "Look at the artwork there. Students chose it and created it with help from the chair of the art and art history department, Kellyann Monaghan, and adjunct faculty member Cara Lynch '12. It reflects what our students want to see."

A Continuing Commitment as a Strategic Objective

Support of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging remains a foundation of Adelphi's Momentum 2 strategic plan, building on the successes achieved since the first Momentum plan was established in 2015. In just the past year, Adelphi:

• Welcomed the most diverse first-year class in the University's history, with a majority of students of color. Students of color now represent 47 percent of the student body, up from 44 percent in 2023.

• Was one of only 20 universities in the country ranked as a top university for equal opportunity and LGBTQIA+ support by Equal Opportunity Magazine. For the second year in a row, Adelphi was also recognized by Campus Pride as one of the 30 Best of the Best LGBTQ-Friendly Campuses in the United States.

• Was awarded a $2.49 million National Science Foundation (NSF) grant designed to fund scholarships for high-achieving, Pell-eligible students from local high schools interested in majoring in STEM fields.

• Celebrated the 10th anniversary of its Bridges to Adelphi program, one of the nation's first college programs for neurodivergent students.

All of these accomplishments are products of deliberative, collaborative efforts across the University to nurture a diverse, inclusive environment.

"We do spend a lot of time in committees, but it all produces results that are to everyone's benefit," Dr. West said. "It takes time, but it's well worth it. It's part of the reason our collective work stands out.

"I'm very fortunate to do this work, and I love what I do," she continued. "I am truly honored to work with our community and our leadership and, while there is still more to be done, I am extremely pleased that our continuing efforts are again being recognized with a HEED Award."