ME Ambassadors Win Outstanding Unit Award
five adults stand in a row smiling while the middle person holds an award certificate
The ME Ambassadors team receives the Outstanding Unit Award at the University of Minnesota Equity & Diversity Breakfast. Photo credit: Bruce Silcox.

The ME Ambassadors Program received the 2023 Outstanding Unit Award for Equity and Diversity, an award given by the Office for Equity and Diversity (OED) recognizing outstanding leadership in diversity and equity work. The award highlights units working to bring transformational and sustainable change to the University of Minnesota.

"This award is a major accomplishment for this program," said ME Ambassador Benjamin Curoe. "Having only been around for three years, we have seen incredible growth in such a short period and a significant impact on the students we have taught. This program at its core is about creating an atmosphere where students of all backgrounds are able to explore what it means to be an engineer and show them that they have it within themselves to succeed in an engineering career. The stark lack of diversity within the mechanical engineering field is a constant obstacle that prevents addressing the needs of all people, leaving those outside of the majority behind. With this award, I hope this program continues to grow and inspire other departments to do the same."

A 2018 Pew Research report identified mechanical engineering as having the lowest inclusion of women, at 8%, with only 10% of mechanical engineers being black or Hispanic. In an effort to increase diversity, the ME Ambassadors Program recruits undergraduate students to engage in peer-to-peer interactions with 3rd-4th grade students, a critical time when many students decide to pursue STEM. Ambassadors serve as mentors, design hands-on activities to increase students’ interest in engineering, and light a path to becoming an engineer for students in K-12 schools that have limited STEM resources.

"This is quite an honor and is such a great way to recognize the immense time and thoughtful collaboration among the students, staff, and faculty of our program," said faculty advisor Nichole Morris. "We are very proud of what we have built together and we will be delighted to share this news with all the students and donors that have made this idea the successful reality it has become."
 
Faculty advisors Morris, Natasha Wright, and Al Aksan attended the University of Minnesota Equity & Diversity Breakfast along with student ambassador leaders Curoe and Anna Frischmon, where they were presented with the Outstanding Unit Award.
 
"To me, this award is simply a means of continuing the work we are already doing," said Frischmon. "I hope this recognition will lead to our program’s expansion so that we can reach more kids. It is important for me to be part of the ambassadors program because it is disheartening to see the lack of diversity in the mechanical engineering field. Mechanical engineers are responsible for so much of our world’s functioning and the lack of diverse engineers leads to a lack of diverse solutions to the world’s problems. I want to help every young student know that they are capable of being an engineer while expressing their unique identity."
 
five adults stand in a row behind a person speaking at a podium
 
a table set with outstanding unit award brochures and plates for breakfast
 
 

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