College of Medicine Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Diverse learners, faculty, staff, and communities
The College of Medicine strives to foster a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment for our students, residents, faculty, staff and patients. Our definition of diversity includes, though is not limited to race, ethnicity, veteran status, socioeconomic status, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, religion, spiritual beliefs, and disabilities.
We welcome your input and suggestions as they help advance our diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and create a rich, engaging, welcoming environment for all.
Mission and Vision
The mission of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is to support the College of Medicine in achieving its mission to train culturally competent physicians who are prepared to provide care to underserved communities. The office provides educational opportunities, strategic guidance and resources to aid our community of students, residents, faculty and staff in their work to promote health equity. Our vision is to create a diverse, equitable and inclusive work and learning environment and aid in reducing health disparities throughout Michigan and beyond.
Contact us
Donnesha A. Blake, Ph.D. (she/her)
989-774-6565
Diversity and inclusion statement
College of Medicine defines diversity for its students, faculty and staff with the following statement:
"The Central Michigan University College of Medicine strives to develop a culture of inclusion and mutual respect. As a core value of the college, diversity encompasses inclusiveness, mutual respect and varied perspectives. In order to develop an inclusive culture the college recognizes the importance of varied perspectives and experiences in the students we admit and the faculty and staff we recruit and retain. Striving for diversity and embracing inclusiveness in these groups enriches the learning environment across the continuum of medical education, fosters a more enriching workplace for faculty and staff, and may help reduce health care disparities in the patients that we serve.
As a cornerstone of creating a diverse and inclusive student body, the college utilizes a holistic admissions program. In particular, we seek to admit students with emphasis on gender, underrepresented groups in medicine,* and alignment with the geographic footprint of the college, which encompasses medically underserved rural and urban areas in the Upper Peninsula, Mid and Lower Northern Michigan, and the thumb of Michigan.
In our faculty and staff we aim to recruit and retain with an emphasis on gender, underrepresented groups in medicine* and veteran status.
The college believes that these groups will enhance and enrich the culture of the institution and align with the core mission of the College of Medicine - to address the health care shortage in rural and urban underserved areas in the College footprint."
*AAMC Definition - Underrepresented in medicine means those racial and ethnic populations that are underrepresented in the medical profession relative to their numbers in the general population.
Land, Labor and Ancestral Acknowledgements
We acknowledge that Central Michigan University, the place at which we learn and work, resides on land of the Anishinaabe peoples. We are grateful for their stewardship of this land, and we acknowledge the painful history of genocide and forced removal of these peoples by colonizers from their land and the impact colonization has on Indigenous/Native people today. We commit to learning about how we can be better partners and stewards of this land and community.
We also acknowledge the labor our ancestors, specifically our African ancestors, whose enslavement and forced and unpaid labor contributed/s to the economic growth of this country. We are indebted to their labor and their sacrifice, and we must acknowledge the tremors of that violence throughout the generations and the resulting impact that can still be felt and witnessed today. We commit and invite you to commit to learning how to be better allies, accomplices, and advocates for Black people, whose freedom liberates us all.
