Each award includes a gift of $1,500 for the awardee to designate toward a program or department of their choice, supporting Clark\u2019s shared commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity.<\/p>\n
The Distinguished Inclusive Excellence Award, which includes a $1,000 gift, also was announced.<\/p>\n
Undergraduate and graduate students, academic and staff employees, student organizations, campus offices, departments, centers, academic or administrative programs, and Clark partnerships within the broader Worcester community, can be nominated.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s awardees are Loobna Zahan \u201922, Christopher Munoz Calene, Kadijha Kuanda \u201922, Kaila Skeet Browning \u201922, Esteban Veloso Cardemil, Shay Hopley Malko \u201914, and the Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise, and Nadia Ward, who earned the Distinguished Inclusive Excellence.<\/p>\n
Loobna Zahan<\/p>\n
Loobna Zahan<\/strong><\/p>\n When Loobna Zahan \u201922 arrived at Clark, she didn\u2019t know what to expect. The first-generation student didn\u2019t see herself as a leader or change-maker. In four years, that changed.<\/p>\n \u201cClark communities helped me embrace my ethnic and religious identities and helped me realize how important it is to use our voice to advocate and fight for those who need the resources the most,\u201d Zahan says. \u201cOne thing I have learned is if you do not use your voice, no one sees you, no one looks for you.\u201d<\/p>\n Zahan was a leader in the South Asian Student Association and the Muslim Students\u2019 Association, was an Advancing Clark Excellence mentor for the Multicultural and First-Generation Student Support Office (now Identity, Student Engagement, and Access) for the 2021-2022 academic year, and choreographed the Bangladesh dance for Gala<\/a> in the spring. She majored in psychology<\/a> with a minor in management<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was doing the stressful, exhausting work behind the scenes,\u202fwhich\u202foften felt lonely and not recognized, I did not anticipate being acknowledged for my work,\u201d she says. \u201cI am extremely grateful for this award, and I only hope future leaders in my communities are also appreciated, recognized,\u202fand celebrated for the contributions they make to support and fight for their communities.\u201d<\/p>\n Christopher Mu\u00f1oz-Calene<\/strong><\/p>\n Christopher Mu\u00f1oz-Calene says his experience applying to college led him to his role as associate director of access partnerships at Clark. As an applicant, Mu\u00f1oz-Calene wanted to learn more about resources for students of color and those in the LGBTQIA+ community, but didn\u2019t know where to look.<\/p>\n \u201cIt never occurred to me that admissions offices could be resources in learning about an institution,\u201d he says. \u201cThat experience informs my approach to my work at Clark. My guiding question is: How do we demystify the process and empower all students to access information as they make their college choice?\u201d<\/p>\n Mu\u00f1oz-Calene strives to create bridges for prospective students to connect meaningfully with Clark\u2019s campus.<\/p>\n Kadijha Kuanda<\/strong><\/p>\n For Kadijha Kuanda, becoming an advocate for the BIPOC community was a necessity, not a choice.<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to do this work alongside incredible and hardworking people including students, professors, and faculty, there will always be more to be done to create the safe, just, and equitable space all of us deserve and need,\u201d Kuanda says. \u201cIt has been with great joy that I have seen both international students and BIPOC students come together during and beyond the\u202fpandemic to support each other and celebrate our identities.\u201d<\/p>\n Kuanda got involved with the Black Student Union during her sophomore year and served as its president during her last semester at Clark. She was also a founding member of the BSUxCUSC coalition to advocate for racial justice on campus and for all BIPOC students. She majored in political science<\/a> with a minor in philosophy<\/a> and a concentration in ethics and public policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n Kuanda says her award is for international and BIPOC students who have prevailed through difficult times.<\/p>\n Kaila Skeet Browning\u202f<\/strong><\/p>\n At Clark, Kaila Skeet Browning\u202flearned that equity work is more than just meeting with University administration. It also means establishing connections across campus.<\/p>\n \u201cThe root of social change at Clark has always been because of the work of marginalized students of color, especially Black people of marginalized genders,\u201d she says. \u201cWe have supported each other through sharing rides and meals, countless late-night phone calls, and bringing humor and joy into this work whenever possible.\u201d<\/p>\n Skeet Browning says it took brilliant minds to sustain initiatives such as the FIRM Food Pantry, affinity housing, and disability affinity space, and thanked friends, co-organizers, and mentors who were instrumental in her growth as a person and organizer.<\/p>\n \u201cI do not doubt there will be continued commitment and love that current and upcoming organizers will pour into these initiatives, as well as the new initiatives they’ll create,\u201d says Skeet Browning, a former community, youth, education studies<\/a>\u202fmajor.<\/p>\n Esteban Veloso Cardemil<\/strong><\/p>\n Professor Esteban Veloso Cardemil<\/a>\u2019s research focuses on understanding and addressing mental healthcare disparities in the United States that disproportionately affect individuals from low-income and racial\/ethnic minority backgrounds. He\u2019s taught related courses, including Race and Racism, and just completed a three-year term as chair of the Psychology Department<\/a>. As chair, Cardemil worked to prioritize DEI considerations into curriculum, teaching practices, and research.<\/p>\n \u201cMy interest in this work stems, in part, from my identity as a cisgender, heterosexual, able-bodied Latino man who immigrated to the U.S. from Chile and grew up in a bilingual and bicultural household,\u201d he says. \u201cNavigating the challenges and opportunities that come from living as a person of color in the U.S. with numerous identity-based privileges shaped my sense of self and my view of the relationship between the personal and the professional.\u201d<\/p>\n Cardemil says the Clark community\u2019s passion to improve the world is inspiring.<\/p>\n Shay Hopley Malko<\/strong><\/p>\n Shay Hopley Malko wants to hear your story. She\u2019s a passionate listener intent on learning about other people\u2019s experiences and identities.<\/p>\n \u201cI am always questioning whose story gets told, as well as the stories we tell ourselves about difference and privilege. Stories are my entry into diversity, inclusion, and social justice work, especially as a white, cisgender woman,\u201d she says. \u201cI work to build strong relationships so we can authentically talk about difficult issues like race, sexuality, ability, and systemic oppression.\u201d<\/p>\n As a Clark student, Hopley Malko was involved in Residential Life and Housing, the Undergraduate Student Council, the knitting club, and the English Department<\/a>. After working at North Dakota State University<\/a>, Western Connecticut State University<\/a>, Trinity College<\/a>, and the University of Connecticut<\/a>, she returned to Clark in 2020 as the University\u2019s academic success manager.<\/p>\n \u201cI have been so lucky to have mentors and colleagues who show me daily the radical power of practicing empathy and showing up to listen to and engage with folks who do not feel heard or affirmed in our communities,\u201d she says. \u201cIt is an honor to hear people\u2019s stories.\u201d<\/p>\n Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise<\/strong><\/p>\n Clark\u2019s Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise<\/a> focuses on the behavioral health of adolescents and young adults, particularly young men of color, and imagines a world where all young people are supported in developing the social and emotional skills necessary to be successful.<\/p>\n According to the Institute: \u201cAddressing the behavioral health concerns of youth requires a response that espouses the very values we hold dear and makes us who we are; we are a community that cares. Our approach to this important work is guided by our core values.<\/p>\n \u201cWe culturally situate our work at the intersection of culture, context, and place in a way that appreciates and values diversity and inclusion of all people. And importantly, our work with adolescents and emerging adults is conceptualized within a strengths-based model that emphasizes youth empowerment, assets and opportunities, not deficits.\u201d<\/p>\n The Institute\u2019s mission is to leverage digital health technologies to reimagine behavioral health as young people in America face staggering rates of mental health challenges. It is pioneering an app called MI PEACE that allows adolescents and young adults to learn about common behavioral health concerns, assess their symptoms, and determine a course of action.<\/p>\n![\"headshot](\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/chris-calene-headshot-1.jpg\")
![\"headshot](\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/Kadijha-Kuanda-photo-by-Kaila-Skeet-Browning-187x280-2.jpg\")
![\"Kaila](\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/Kaila-Skeet-Browning-Photo-209x280-2.jpg\")
![\"Esteban](\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2015-Esteban-Cardemil-Clark-University-420x260-2.jpg\")
![\"Shalyn](\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022-Shalyn-Hopley-Malko-007-420x280-2.jpg\")
![\"Mosakowski](\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021-Mosakowski-Institute-Interns-075-420x239-2.jpg\")
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