2020 Marks the Third Consecutive Year that FNU Receives HEED Award
Versailles, KY, Oct. 05, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Frontier Nursing University (FNU) received the 2020 Health Professions Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education. This is the third consecutive year that FNU has received this prestigious award.
As a recipient of the annual Health Professions HEED Award — a national honor recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion — FNU will be featured, along with 45 other recipients, in the December 2020 issue of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine.
“The HEED Award process consists of a comprehensive and rigorous application that includes questions relating to the recruitment and retention of students and employees — and best practices for both — continued leadership support for diversity, and other aspects of campus diversity and inclusion,” said Lenore Pearlstein, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. “We take a detailed approach to reviewing each application in deciding who will be named a HEED Award recipient. Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being done every day across their campus.”
“Being selected as a recipient of the prestigious HEED Award for a third consecutive year is an incredible honor for Frontier Nursing University,” said FNU President Dr. Susan Stone. “Amidst the current social justice movement in our country, it is imperative that FNU serve as an agent for change. We know that culturally competent care improves health outcomes and begins with a more diverse healthcare system. We are proud to be taking a leadership role in this movement by educating an increasingly diverse student body, but fully recognize that we have much to learn and areas in which to improve. The HEED Award confirms that we are continuing to move in the right direction and to make meaningful progress.”
FNU’s commitment to emphasizing and valuing diversity and inclusion was formally instituted with the creation of the Diversity Impact Program in 2010. The following year, FNU held its first annual Diversity Impact Conference. Held each summer, the Diversity Impact Conference opens the door for nurse practitioner and nurse-midwifery students plus faculty and staff to foster collaborative discussions, address health disparities, and find proactive solutions to improve health among underrepresented and marginalized groups.