Two AAVMC Members Earn Diversity HEED Awards

Washington, D.C – November 15, 2019 – Two member institutions of the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) have been awarded the 2019 Health Professions Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award. It’s the only national honor recognizing U.S. medical, dental, pharmacy, osteopathic, nursing, veterinary, allied health, and other health schools and centers that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion across their campuses.

Honorees include the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Both schools have won the award for the past three consecutive years.

“Congratulations to these colleges for earning this prestigious award,” said AAVMC Chief Executive Officer Dr. Andrew T. Maccabe. “All of our members are committed to building diversity and inclusion on campus, but these schools have demonstrated an extraordinary, continuous level of excellence when it comes to fostering diversity and inclusion.”

The award, which is open to all colleges and universities of the health professions across the U.S. and Canada, is based upon a comprehensive assessment of an institution’s level of achievement and intensity of commitment in regard to broadening diversity and inclusion on campus through initiatives, programs, and outreach; student recruitment, retention, and completion; and hiring practices for faculty and staff.

It includes medical, dental, pharmacy, osteopathic, nursing, veterinary medical, allied health, and other health schools and centers. A total of 43 institutions received awards.

HEED Award administrators say one of the goals of the application process is to help institutions of higher education assess their diversity efforts in a way that helps them recognize and build upon their success and identify opportunities for improvement.

The award is judged by representatives of Potomac Publishing, Inc., publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. INSIGHT Into Diversity is the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education.

The American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) is a nonprofit membership organization working to protect and improve the health and welfare of animals, people and the environment around the world by advancing academic veterinary medicine. Members include 52 accredited veterinary medical colleges in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe, Australia, Asia and New Zealand.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:
Jeff Douglas or Jeanne Johnson
Phone: 202/371-9195, x144
Email: jdouglas@aavmc.org or jjohnson@aavmc.org