2021 AUTM meeting coverage
This article appeared in the April 2021 issue of Technology Transfer Tactics.
Click to read the entire Technology Transfer Tactics article
James Zanewicz, TUSOM Chief Business Officer participated in the AUTM 2021 Annual Meeting as a panelist during the Driving diversity and inclusion: Moving from rhetoric to reality session.
Zanewicz noted that TTOs are in an excellent position to better engage underrepresented inventors and students. “The data shows that those are the people less likely to step forward and say, ‘I need help’ or ‘I want to learn more,’” he observed. “By actively reaching out and engaging with those folks, we can do a lot to show people that they are able to be engaged in the activities we are in, whether it is from the scientific side or from people who might become future leaders in our profession.”
He also commented that getting the right mix for true diversity might be tricky. “For diversity of thought, just because you have diversity in the traditional sense and are including different people of color and genders and sexual orientations, it does not necessarily mean you are choosing people who think differently than you do,” he said. “We also need to look at people who have different backgrounds, all those other types [who think] differently than we do, or we wind up in groupthink, and that is just as dangerous and can lead us down a worse path than having [no] diversity.”
131 South Robertson Street, Room 1511
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone 504-988-7401
Fax 504-988-6462
bhorne1@tulane.edu
Bennetta is the Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs. She completed her undergraduate studies at Xavier University of Louisiana and her graduate work at LSU Health Sciences Center. She is responsible for fostering an all-inclusive environment for current and prospective students from traditionally underrepresented populations. These populations include not only groups who identify through race but also through religious beliefs, sexual identity, as well as other non-traditional students. The Office of Multicultural Affairs will also work to increase cultural sensitivity of the student body, faculty, and staff as well as to enhance the retention and academic success of all students.
David McIntosh, PhD, MA
Vice President, Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
October 15, 2019
Tulane University School of Medicine (TUSOM) values diversity. Tulane defines diversity broadly to include: persons of color, members of the LGBTQIA community, members of diverse ethnic groups including those typically underrepresented in medicine, members of economically disadvantaged groups, and any others who bring a different perspective to the learning environment. The school of medicine believes in a rich educational experience for all students through the infusion of cultural competency, sensitivity, and attentiveness. Additionally, the school of medicine values the sum total of ideals and perspectives of all individuals engaged in and connected to the educational process.
The vision of the TUSOM is to cultivate an environment of inclusiveness and equity for the learning community. These efforts will promote social justice throughout the medical education community, diminishing the occurrences of discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or ability. This effort will generate conscientious global citizens primed to provide vital medical care to the diverse population in southeastern Louisiana and around the globe, thus advancing health equity.
