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Howard, Johnson Named 2022 ACC UNITE Award Recipients
10/20/2022 10:02:00 AM | Volleyball, Athletics
GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced the recipients of the second annual 2022 ACC UNITE Award, which was created to honor individuals affiliated with the league who have made an impact in the areas of racial and social justice. The UNITE Award is an initiative of the ACC's Committee for Racial and Social Justice (CORE - Champions of Racial Equity) and was developed and approved by its 15 member institutions. Mike Howard and Gracie Johnson were named Duke's winners.
Howard is the Managing Director of Recreation Facilities at Duke University and also serves as co-chair with Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator Heather Ryan on the Duke Athletics Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Advisory committee. In this capacity, Howard emulates a level of passion and commitment to creating a community for student-athletes and staff of color in the athletics department which is felt and witnessed by many. His leadership on this committee, as well as in the department, has been instrumental in Duke's efforts to create a safe and inclusive culture. For the last year and half, Howard worked tirelessly in co-leading and facilitating the development of the Duke Athletics DEIB Strategic Plan. He has been, and continues to be, intentionally interacting with numerous members of administration, staff and students in gathering input and having genuine conversations to capture feelings and insights.
This past semester, Howard served as a mentor to the student-athlete led United Black Athletes (UBA) organization. He also was one of the first staff members to participate in and help pilot the current partnership with "A Long Talk" anti-racism education program which engages both staff and students. Howard was also part of the ACC Selma Unity Trip last summer with two student-athletes – creating more relationships and shared experiences from which to build and expand educational and engagement initiatives related to social justice and racial equity. Howard is also Duke's representative on the ACC CORE committee.
Johnson is a current Duke volleyball student-athlete and team captain. Johnson has played an integral role in initiating and leading team conversations about race, anti-racism and allyship. According to one of her coaches, she is constantly seeking and considering ways to help continue and carry conversations surrounding social justice and racism. Johnson is willing to step outside her comfort zone, and engage in hard conversations with peers, as well as with people in power. Most recently, Johnson used skills she had learned from the teams' "A Long Talk" educational program around anti-racism. She felt compelled and was able to express her thoughts and feelings to administrators at BYU and Duke.
Johnson also chose to represent Duke Athletics at a Unity Dinner as a voice and advocating for programs like a "A Long Talk" and the empowering impact it has had on helping create safe spaces and ways to challenge racism even in what may seem like small ways. This summer, Johnson participated in the ACC Unity Trip to Selma and came back wanting to create and share more similar opportunities. She and her teammates have now also experienced and engaged in discussions together surrounding the EJI museum and plan to visit the Greensboro Civil Rights Museum in an upcoming team travel weekend.
The UNITE Award is presented annually to individuals who:
"We are proud to honor the ACC UNITE Award winners who have made significant contributions in the areas of racial and social justice," said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. "These 30 individuals are true pioneers who inspire us with their contributions to a more diverse and equal society. As a conference we will remain steadfast in our pursuit of racial and social justice, while assisting our student-athletes and institutions with programs that can affect change."
ACC SiriusXM will devote a portion of their morning show to the 2022 UNITE Award recipients with hosts Chris Spatola and Dalen Cuff Thursday morning at 10 a.m.
2022 UNITE Award Recipients
Boston College: M. Quentin Williams & Dr. Constance Smith Hendricks
Clemson: Wayne Jenkins & Barbara Kennedy-Dixon (posthumously)
Duke: Michael Howard & Gracie Johnson
Florida State: Leonard Hamilton & Morgan M. Jones
Georgia Tech: Lucius Sanford & Lynn Houston-Moore
Louisville: Jim Freeman & Valerie (Owens) Combs
Miami: Corey Jones & Lauryn Harris
North Carolina: Charles Scott & Kathy Crawford
NC State: Dr. Marcus Martin & Charece Williams Gee
Notre Dame: Cason Wilburn & Niele Ivey
Pitt: Dr. Bettina Love & Herb Douglas
Syracuse: Dedrick Etan Thomas & Emily Nugent
Virginia: Marques Hagans & Hailey Barnett
Virginia Tech: André Davis & Reyna Gilbert-Lowry
Wake Forest: Jim Caldwell & Charlene Curtis (posthumously)
Howard is the Managing Director of Recreation Facilities at Duke University and also serves as co-chair with Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator Heather Ryan on the Duke Athletics Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Advisory committee. In this capacity, Howard emulates a level of passion and commitment to creating a community for student-athletes and staff of color in the athletics department which is felt and witnessed by many. His leadership on this committee, as well as in the department, has been instrumental in Duke's efforts to create a safe and inclusive culture. For the last year and half, Howard worked tirelessly in co-leading and facilitating the development of the Duke Athletics DEIB Strategic Plan. He has been, and continues to be, intentionally interacting with numerous members of administration, staff and students in gathering input and having genuine conversations to capture feelings and insights.
This past semester, Howard served as a mentor to the student-athlete led United Black Athletes (UBA) organization. He also was one of the first staff members to participate in and help pilot the current partnership with "A Long Talk" anti-racism education program which engages both staff and students. Howard was also part of the ACC Selma Unity Trip last summer with two student-athletes – creating more relationships and shared experiences from which to build and expand educational and engagement initiatives related to social justice and racial equity. Howard is also Duke's representative on the ACC CORE committee.
Johnson is a current Duke volleyball student-athlete and team captain. Johnson has played an integral role in initiating and leading team conversations about race, anti-racism and allyship. According to one of her coaches, she is constantly seeking and considering ways to help continue and carry conversations surrounding social justice and racism. Johnson is willing to step outside her comfort zone, and engage in hard conversations with peers, as well as with people in power. Most recently, Johnson used skills she had learned from the teams' "A Long Talk" educational program around anti-racism. She felt compelled and was able to express her thoughts and feelings to administrators at BYU and Duke.
Johnson also chose to represent Duke Athletics at a Unity Dinner as a voice and advocating for programs like a "A Long Talk" and the empowering impact it has had on helping create safe spaces and ways to challenge racism even in what may seem like small ways. This summer, Johnson participated in the ACC Unity Trip to Selma and came back wanting to create and share more similar opportunities. She and her teammates have now also experienced and engaged in discussions together surrounding the EJI museum and plan to visit the Greensboro Civil Rights Museum in an upcoming team travel weekend.
The UNITE Award is presented annually to individuals who:
- Best exemplify ACC CORE's mission to promote and encourage racial equity and social justice through education, partnerships, engagement and advocacy
- Have helped create meaningful, lasting change by improving systems, organizational structures, policies, practices and attitudes
- Have been a pioneer and/or helped pave the way for minorities either at the institution or in the community
"We are proud to honor the ACC UNITE Award winners who have made significant contributions in the areas of racial and social justice," said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. "These 30 individuals are true pioneers who inspire us with their contributions to a more diverse and equal society. As a conference we will remain steadfast in our pursuit of racial and social justice, while assisting our student-athletes and institutions with programs that can affect change."
ACC SiriusXM will devote a portion of their morning show to the 2022 UNITE Award recipients with hosts Chris Spatola and Dalen Cuff Thursday morning at 10 a.m.
2022 UNITE Award Recipients
Boston College: M. Quentin Williams & Dr. Constance Smith Hendricks
Clemson: Wayne Jenkins & Barbara Kennedy-Dixon (posthumously)
Duke: Michael Howard & Gracie Johnson
Florida State: Leonard Hamilton & Morgan M. Jones
Georgia Tech: Lucius Sanford & Lynn Houston-Moore
Louisville: Jim Freeman & Valerie (Owens) Combs
Miami: Corey Jones & Lauryn Harris
North Carolina: Charles Scott & Kathy Crawford
NC State: Dr. Marcus Martin & Charece Williams Gee
Notre Dame: Cason Wilburn & Niele Ivey
Pitt: Dr. Bettina Love & Herb Douglas
Syracuse: Dedrick Etan Thomas & Emily Nugent
Virginia: Marques Hagans & Hailey Barnett
Virginia Tech: André Davis & Reyna Gilbert-Lowry
Wake Forest: Jim Caldwell & Charlene Curtis (posthumously)
Players Mentioned
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