Commission names recipients
of Davis Diversity Award

NIU’s Presidential Commission on the Status of Minorities (PCSM) at NIU has named university staff members Leroy Mitchell and Monique Bernoudy and law student Michael Kirkwood as recipients of the first Deacon Davis Diversity Award.

Named in honor of Deacon Davis, founder and former director of the CHANCE (Counseling Help & Assistance Necessary for a College Education) program, the award was created to recognize the significant contributions made to the improvement of the status of minorities on campus by members of the university community.

Mitchell has been director of the CHANCE program since 1980. Bernoudy, associate athletics director since 1999, has been instrumental by implementing and facilitating diversity training among staff and students throughout the university. Kirkwood, a second year law student, serves as president of the Black Law Students Association and admissions representative for the law school’s Office of Admissions & Financial Aid.

Eighteen nominations were received for the award.

“It was a difficult selection process for the awards committee,” said LeRoy Pernell, dean of the NIU College of Law and chair of the PCSM. “Each nominee was exceptional and deserving of this award.”

The PCSM was established to assure that NIU consistently and comprehensively will reflect, sponsor, mandate and totally support action designed to enhance the status of minorities. It is the oldest commission in existence on the NIU campus.

The Deacon Davis Diversity Award was presented during the Annual PCSM Spring Banquet held April 14 in the Holmes Student Center.

5-3-04