Dobbins chief graduates 10th Atlanta Diversity Leadership Class

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ATLANTA --  Chief Master Sgt. Wanda G. Greene, 22nd Air Force superintendant and director of human resources for Georgia Institute of Technology College of Management, recently graduated from the 10th Anniversary Diversity Leadership Academy Atlanta class of the American Institute for Managing Diversity.

The Diversity Leadership Academy, founded 27 years ago, is a community-based leadership development program in diversity management that brings leaders together from across the community to develop their individual diversity management capability. The academy was launched in Atlanta in 2001. The recent class brings the total number of Atlanta alumni to over 300 professionals.

"We are proud to congratulate our 10th anniversary class, said Ralph Cleveland, executive vice-president, AGL Resources, Inc. and American Institute for Managing Diversity board president. "Their leadership in our city will continue to make diversity management a key component in strategic decision making within the corporate, academic, government and non-profit arenas."

As a class participant, Greene realized the importance of being aware and armed with the tools of diversity in order to implement them at Georgia Tech.

"Dr. Bud Peterson, president of Georgia Tech, has made diversity a part of his strategic plan for the institute," said Greene. "I wanted to further educate myself in this critical area."

Attendees are selected based on their role in their respective workplaces. They answer a series of questions on why they feel that being a candidate at the academy will equip them to manage diversity-related initiatives. All applications are reviewed by the Diversity Leadership Academy Board of Admissions

The objective is to create a diverse class of approximately 35 to 40 participants, representative of the community, in varied sectors such as business, civic, non-profit, government, education and religion.

Key components and concepts of diversity in the workplace and community are discussed. Participants are introduced to new frameworks, processes, and tools as they participate in a series of activities and group discussions. Instructors encouraged participants to examine how their perspectives may create barriers to becoming effective diversity respondents.

"The Giraffe and the Elephant Fable was presented, depicting an insider-outsider phenomenon that creates tension and complexity, said Greene. "The animated story provoked participants to begin looking at what actions are necessary to create a mutually beneficial work environment and healthy working relationships while meeting organizational requirements."

The class concluded with a two-month diversity project taken from a real-life situation. The end results were presented to the class, community leaders, American Institute for Managing Diversity supporters and members of each organization that sponsored a participant.

"The class was a very insightful, time demanding, challenging and extremely beneficial," said Greene. "I formed relationships, developed connections and networked with many people from organizations throughout Atlanta."

"Organizations cannot just throw money at a project and pretend they are advocates for diversity," Greene added. "Putting practices into place after the allocation of resources is more concrete evident that a company is committed to true diversity practices."