The Office of Diversity and Inclusion has honored Ginger Gummelt with the inaugural Inspirational Woman Award at Lamar University.

“Being recognized as an outstanding woman at Lamar University has extra significance when I look at the amazing women who are a part of our university,” Gummelt said. “We are part of a community that recognizes and celebrates the invaluable contribution of women. The women who were nominated for this award are some of my heroes and role models here on campus and it is an honor to simply stand beside them in nomination and recognition for this award.”

Gummelt is an assistant professor of Social Work and director of Social Work at Lamar University. She holds a Ph.D. in social work from the University of Houston and is a licensed clinical social worker with nearly 20 years of experience in direct clinical practice. She is the coordinator for the local “Do the Write Thing” campaign, a collaborative researcher on the Jefferson County Adolescent Drug Court grant, and has served as the coordinator for the Title IV-E Child Welfare grant at Lamar University.

Also recognized were: Olayinka Jenmy, assistant director of Residence Life; Rezvan Khoshlessan, coordinator for the Center for Teaching and Learning Enhancement; Taylor Tucker, student; Sara Hillin, associate professor in the Department of English and Modern Languages; Clementine Msengi, visiting associate professor in the Center for Doctoral Studies in Education Leadership; Catalina Castillon, associate professor in the Department of English and Modern Languages, and assistant director of the Office of Undergraduate Research; and Madison Marino, student.

In preparation for the event, the Office of Global Diversity invited students, faculty, staff and alumni to nominate Lamar University women whose actions or professional practices exemplified diversity and who by make significant contributions to the growth and success of women at the university. 

To determine which of the nominees best demonstrated the qualities and values the Inspirational Women Award honors, a committee reviewed and scored each application according to the criteria set out by the Office of Global Diversity and Inclusive Excellence. Furthermore, all personal information for both the nominees and the individual who nominated them was redacted to eliminate potential bias that could favor one person over another, assuring the committee would remain neutral.