With its varied lineup of programs and initiatives, the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s (UMB) Intercultural Leadership and Engagement (ILE) unit strives to bring out excellence and continued growth in UMB and the members of its community.

Founded in spring 2020, ILE immediately faced its first challenge: the dual crises of COVID-19 and systemic racism. The staff worked on anti-racism efforts, the promotion of virtual volunteering, and interprofessional collaboration programs.

“These various initiatives showcase how a small office can fully embody a core value and make it a shared priority of improving the whole campus community toward a similar goal,” Gregory Brightbill, MBA, MEd, associate director, Student Leadership & Involvement, ILE, said in nominating ILE for the 2021 Presidential Core Values Award for Excellence.

ILE, which Brightbill said “serves as a leading guide for UMB’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion,” offers numerous programs that foster a sense of belonging and acknowledge the needs and lived experiences of historically marginalized students, staff, and faculty. Initiatives include heritage month programming, anti-racism and anti-oppression educational programs, and Safe Space trainings on LGBTQ+ allyship, advocacy, and education. 

The team of four full-time staff has taken an academic approach to addressing issues that impact UMB, writing articles on the University’s COVID-19 response, racism and its impact on the University, and how experimental medicine on Black communities affects vaccination efforts.

Courtney Jones Carney, MBA, executive director, ILE, said the staff members were humbled to receive the award.

“As a unit dedicated to anti-racism work, we plan to use this award as fuel to continue to create and implement initiatives and experiences that better position UMB students, faculty, and staff to embody excellence through equity,” said Jones Carney, who also leads ILE’s Intercultural Center, which provides resources for historically underrepresented students and promotes Universitywide programming that is grounded in equity and social justice.

ILE also leads initiatives such as the President’s Student Leadership Institute, a co-curricular interprofessional program that engages students in service and inclusive leadership, career development, entrepreneurship and innovation, integrative health and well-being, and scholarly research and writing. The program, which had more than 600 students take part in 2020 and 2021, includes 30 hours of community service.

ILE sponsors the President’s Symposium and White Paper Project made up of President’s Fellows. This year, the students researched Health Literacy as a Social Determinant of Health and will make recommendations to UMB leadership to address societal concerns.

“These initiatives specifically focused on students provide them with many options to improve their leadership ability and career development,” Brightbill said. “The work done by ILE helps UMB’s students learn how to be better leaders for a future of excellence within the fields of health and human services.”

— Jen Badie

Honorable mention: Erik Neilsen, Communications and Public Affairs, UMB; Michele Ondra, MBA, MS, Francis King Carey School of Law; Bill Crockett, MS, RCRSP, Student Affairs, UMB

(In photo, clockwise from top left: Jolé Ruff, Gregory Brightbill, Courtney Jones Carney, Mark Dixon, Rosemary Ferreira, and Cyndi Rice)

Back to the 2021 Core Values Award Winners