ARI advisory board member honored. BCTC’s Charlene Walker named ‘Individual Champion of Diversity’ by the Urban League of Lexington
By Jennifer Tyson, Bluegrass Community and Technical College

The Urban League of Lexington has awarded its 2015 Individual Champion of Diversity to Charlene Walker, vice president of Multiculturalism and Inclusion at Bluegrass Community and Technical College (BCTC). The award was given at the league’s Annual Empowerment Banquet on Monday, Oct. 19.

The Urban League’s annual diversity awards are presented to recognize an individual and a business that embrace, celebrate and apply holistic inclusion and participation of a diverse people.

Walker has spent her career creating and directing activities that give students their best opportunity to be successful. At BCTC, she has supported Latino Outreach, International Students and Scholars Services, Diversity Outreach, Intramural Sports, Ready-to-Work, and BLINKS, a program for students transferring to Kentucky State University. She has administered grants with operating budgets of over $2.3 million. She is sought after as a speaker at state and national conferences on issues related to sexism, racism, and classism, and is a member of numerous civic and community organizations including Kentucky Organ Donors Association, the Planning Committee for the annual Lexington Martin Luther King, Jr. March and Celebration, and the University of Kentucky Appalachian Center.

Dr. Augusta Julian, president of BCTC, nominated Walker in recognition of her impact on students’ lives. “Charlene is one of the most committed student advocates I have ever worked with. Her commitment to inclusion and student success drives her work and has resulted in hundreds of students who are working in their dream careers today. Her creation of an annual diversity conference has also given students and partner institutions support to reach their goals. We are very proud of her.”