Kirwan, Coleman award certificates to 21 in 2015 Administrative Fellows Program

Calling the Administrative Fellows Program “a time-honored cornerstone of Harvard’s diversity efforts,” Leslie Kirwan, Faculty of Arts and Sciences dean for administration and finance, paid tribute to the 21 fellows who completed the program this year. Administered by the Office of the Assistant to the President for Institutional Diversity and Equity, AFP offers a year of talent management experience and professional development to mid-career professionals, especially members of underrepresented groups. “With its emphasis on the development of academic administrators of color, the AFP represents a long-term commitment and investment in workplace diversity, inclusion, excellence, talent management, and succession planning,” she added.

In her address to the class, fellow Angela Counts paid tribute to supervisor and coach, Letty Garcia, assistant director, Leadership Initiative, Harvard Business School, who “always encouraged me to keep the full picture in play, both sides of myself, artist and administrator.” Her mentorship, Counts said, “proved to be life changing.” To her classmates, Counts said, “We can measure our AFP year by the people we met, the relationships we formed, and what we learned. We can measure it by the program content, all of which was designed to give each of us a very special year in our lives to step outside ourselves and broaden our understanding, our capabilities, and our possibilities.”

Kirwan and Lisa Coleman, chief diversity officer, presented the certificates of completion to the fellows at a ceremony in the Faculty Club.

See the full list of 2015 fellows and photos of the class.