Filed Under: Education Pipeline
Devin Walker, a doctoral student in the College of Education’s curriculum & instruction department and graduate assistant in the Longhorn Center for Academic Excellence (LCAE), has won the Global Student Leadership Award by Diversity Abroad Network.
Chosen from recommendations made by the 2017 Awards Review Committee, this year’s recipients have demonstrated a commitment to advancing diversity and inclusive excellence within international education on an individual, institutional and organizational level, as well as students who represent Diversity Abroad’s mission to diversify global education.
“Devin has completely transformed the face of study abroad at the institution,” said Dr. Charles Lu, executive director of the LCAE’s Gateway Scholars program, in a statement provided by Diversity Abroad Network.
Some examples of Walker’s leadership include the Diversity Abroad Showcase he founded in 2013. The annual event is attended by prospective students interested in studying abroad and 175 study abroad alumni who present their narratives about learning abroad. He has also created, facilitated and helped to institutionalize a series of study abroad writing workshops designed to support diverse students with their essays and the application process.
Since the program’s inception in 2014, it has served more than 200 students, many of whom were accepted into their respective programs. Walker routinely leads workshops on diversity and inclusion in education abroad for student organizations, and has facilitated workshops for the 2016 Iraqi Fulbright Scholars, the admissions office, as well as a training session for the Study Abroad Office on engaging black men in study abroad.
More recently, he served as a program coordinator and teaching assistant for an award-winning, LCAE program to Cape Town and Beijing. Walker’s service to diversifying study abroad extends beyond the university campus. He has served on the 2015-16 Diversity Abroad Task Force on Men, and this year’s Diversity Abroad Conference planning committee. Walker’s dissertation will explore the impact of study abroad programs on student athletes.
Go here to read more about the LCAE’s Beijing Maymester Program.
