Two UW-Stout staff members have been named special award recipients by the Universities of Wisconsin and were honored at a ceremony on Dec. 4, in Madison.
Associate Professor Min DeGruson, packaging program director, is one of 12 honorees of the Outstanding Women of Color in Education Award. This year is the 29th anniversary of the award, through which more than 400 women of color have been recognized for their transformational work.
LGBTQIA+ Program Manager Fred Jomo Brown is one of 13 honorees of the Dr. P.B. Poorman Award for Outstanding Achievement on Behalf of LGBTQ+ People. The award is in its 16th year.
Each UW campus was invited to submit nominations for the annual awards.
Outstanding Women of Color Award
The Outstanding Women of Color in Education Award honors faculty, staff, students and community members for their achievements in advancing equity and inclusion for people of color within the Universities of Wisconsin as well as communities across the state.
DeGruson joined UW-Stout's packaging program in 2015. As well as her faculty role, she is chair of the Food Packaging Division under the Institute of Food Technologists and the Executive Committee member of Kilmer Innovation in Packaging.
When Provost Glendalí Rodríguez, vice chancellor of Academic Affairs, first met DeGruson, “I quickly realized that she is incredibly approachable and radiates positive energy when she enters the room. As a packaging engineer, Dr. DeGruson’s professional accomplishments are noteworthy, and she focuses on creating opportunities for students.”
DeGruson thinks the most significant part of her work in connection with the award is “creating a sense of belonging and passion for students in their field of study. By empowering them through initiatives like industry connections, research opportunities, various scholarships, study abroad programs and encouraging diversity in engineering, I aim to inspire students to excel and realize their full potential,” she said.
Rodríguez also noted that approximately only 20% of packaging engineers are female-identifying and only 13% are Asian.
“Min is a role model,” said Rodríguez, who received the Regents Diversity Award last February.
UW-Stout’s packaging faculty team is entirely female, the only one of its kind in the nation, DeGruson added.
“The Universities of Wisconsin have a longstanding commitment to inclusion at our universities,” said Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman. “We are proud to honor these women of color whose achievements are helping our campuses and communities.”
Dr. P.B. Poorman Award
The Dr. P.B. Poorman Award is given to people in the LGBTQIA+ community who have helped to create a safer and more inclusive climate. It celebrates the memory and legacy of Paula B. Poorman, a faculty member at UW-Whitewater who dedicated her life to improving the lives of LGBTQIA+ people.
Brown joined UW-Stout in 2020 as an adviser in the Multicultural Student Services office, where he spent two impactful years. Now, as the LGBTQIA+ program manager, he has shaped many students’ experiences and lives.
“Through Fred’s leadership and guidance, students discover new identities within themselves, find new communities and chosen families, and reinvent their voices to show that they too can make an impact in the world around them,” said Executive Director of Student Inclusion and Belonging Mai Khou Xiong.
“Fred’s purpose is centered around helping others to see the world in a broader context, and Stout has been a supportive platform for him to do just that," she added. Xiong received the Outstanding Women of Color in Education Award in 2023.
“My life’s mantra is informed by a quote from Peter Finley Dunne, ‘to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable,’” Brown said.
UW-Stout’s Focus2030 strategic plan includes five goals, including inclusive excellence by investing in, and ensuring access to, equitable, diverse and inclusive learning, student living and work environments that reflect the university’s regional and global connections; and fostering employee success through an equitable environment that invests in, supports, encourages and values diverse faculty and staff development opportunities.
