Award panel kicks off work

Eight of the University’s high-profile women convened Wednesday to start discussions about the best ways to honor women and their contributions to UNC.

The meeting of the Women’s Award Committee marked an initial step toward patching things up after the retirement of the Cornelia Phillips Spencer Bell Award.

After more than a year of controversy regarding Bell’s association with white supremacy, Chancellor James Moeser retired the campus's most prestigious award for women in December. It was Moeser who created the award committee and charged it with assessing UNC’s need for a women’s award.

“We’re here because of the removal of the Bell Award, and the question is, ‘Should there be another award like that for women who serve the University?’” said Jane Brown, chairwoman of the committee and former Bell Award recipient.

If committee members decide that such a distinction is necessary, they will lead efforts to create an award and define the criteria for receiving it.

During its meeting Wednesday, the group reviewed other awards and discussed its plan of attack for future meetings.

The group looked at the Women’s Advocacy Award, an award issued by the Carolina Women’s Center limited to female faculty, staff or students. The committee also examined a draft of the UNC Intellectual Life Award, granted to faculty who create positive change in the community.

At the suggestion of Virginia Carson, director of the Campus Y, members also considered starting a ceremony to bring together recipients of such awards.

“I think it would build community, raise the profile of women’s awards, bring more attention to the awards we have and fill in any gaps,” Carson said.

Most committee members expressed enthusiasm for Carson’s idea. Some members, however, had qualms about the consequences such a reception might have.

“The one fear I have is that if we condense all women’s awards into one period, will that make it seem like there’s less reason to give women’s awards?” said Carol Tresolini, associate provost for academic initiatives.

Members expressed interest in gathering more information about honors for those who improve women’s lives before their next meeting, scheduled for March 23.

“We want to know what else is out there so we’re not duplicating efforts,” Brown said. “It may be that we want to augment something.”

Members created a list of points of interest about the current awards. The list includes how often an award is given, who sponsors it, the benefits that accompany the award, eligibility requirements and selection criteria. They also are interested in learning about an award’s purpose, public receptions that coincide with an award and how many recipients each award has.

Committee members said that by the end of the semester, they hope to determine if another award is needed — and if so, to create a description of such an honor. Until then, members said they remain optimistic about the committee’s success.

“I think there’s a lot of interest in how to recognize and acknowledge women’s contributions on campus,” Brown said. “There are great people committed to getting something done quickly on the committee.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.