The IDE Committee

About the IDE Office and Committee

Office of Diversity and Inclusion

Joanna Hernandez

Journalism Lecturer Joanna Hernandez is CJC’s Director of Inclusion and Diversity, dedicated to guiding improvements in inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility.  She can be reached at: jhernandez@jou.ufl.edu.

The office:

  • Champions CJC’s commitment to having an inclusive and equitable environment in which everyone feels welcomed and appreciated.
  • Leads inclusion, diversity, equity and access initiatives across CJC.
  • Collaborates regularly with IDEA leaders across the University of Florida through our close affiliation and alliance with the university’s Chief Diversity Officer.
  • Works closely with the CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee to help facilitate collaborations across the college community through multiple committees, task forces and partnerships.
  • Helps organize engagement events on a broad range of diversity, inclusion and equity topics for CJC faculty, staff and students.

Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee

The Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee is comprised of elected and volunteer members of faculty and staff at the CJC. The Committee is working to ensure that the CJC becomes a preeminent institution on matters of inclusion, diversity and equity at all levels of activities – from outreach programs to pre-undergrads, to a pluralistic representation among students in our bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programs, from the recruitment and retention of world-class and diverse faculty and staff, to the content and voices represented on our media properties serving communities in North Florida.

The group works as advocates toward an inclusive and equitable environment in the service of living up to the goals stated above.

Mission

  • Promote the principles and best practices of diversity, inclusion and equity in all activities and programs of the College. Monitor Strategic and institutional effectiveness in achieving our diversity goals and help ensure that these efforts undergo ongoing review in a timely manner.
  • Make recommendations to the administration, the CJC Director of Inclusion and Diversity, and other College departments and committees regarding inclusion, diversity and equity tactics and identify challenges to those goals in areas including (but not limited to): curriculum and teaching, immersion venues and programs, career readiness, and student, faculty and staff and recruitment, and advocate for the implementation of these recommendations.
  • Solicit suggestions from faculty, staff and students regarding programs or tactics to address problems in the areas of inclusion, diversity and equity at the College.
  • Working with the Director of Inclusion and Diversity, develop and recommend policies and actions regarding all of the above.

Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee Members

Co-Chairs

Ryan Vasquez

Ryan Vasquez — Staff representative; INC Multimedia News Manager for Audio and interim INC Director

South Florida born and raised. Oversees news content (newscasts, features, podcasts, documentaries) for WUFT-FM covering North Central Florida. CJC adjunct audio news track instructor. Award-winning reporter; former Alabama Public Radio host. 

  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • CJC Staff Council Task Force
  • CJC Climate Questionnaire Task Force
  • CJC Budget Principles Task Force
  • CJC Onboarding Task Force
  • Weimer Hall Safety and Security Work Group
  • UF Fairness and Equity in Assessment Task Force

Matt Sheehan — Journalism Department representative; managing director of the Center for Public Interest Communications and senior lecturer in journalism

Vermont born, lived in Washington, D.C. and South Carolina. Former assistant news editor at The Washington Post, among other newspaper gigs up and down East Coast. Worked at a startup as chief operating officer before joining UF.

  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • CJC Budget and Long-Range Planning Committee (chair)
  • Journalism Department Curriculum Committee (chair)

Student Members

Tammy Nguyen — Undergraduate student representative

Vietnamese American born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri; senior majoring in public relations with a minor in communication studies; president of the Asian Public Relations Student Association dedicated to strengthening AAPI representation in communications. 

 

Qingyuan Yang — Ph.D. student representative

A first-year Ph.D. student in the advertising department whose research area mainly focuses on narrative persuasion, media psychology, and emotions. Yang likes to study how different people react and perceive when they face various media messages.

 

Faculty, Staff and Administration Members

Joanna Hernandez — CJC Director of Inclusion and Diversity; faculty representative

NYC born and raised in Puerto Rican family; journalism lecturer; journalist for 20+ years; member of UF Advanced Leadership for Academics and Professionals 2021-22 cohort.

  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • UF Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access (IDEA) Network
  • CJC Equity Adviser
  • UF Fairness and Equity in Assessment Task Force 
  • CJC College Council
  • The Independent Florida Alligator Board of Directors 
  • Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Awards & Honors Committee
  • Journalism & Women Symposium (JAWS) Board of Directors (Treasurer)

Natalie Asorey — Public Relations Department representative

Miami native; lecturer based in New York City to help establish the P.R. Department and CJC’s footprint in one of the nation’s media and communication hubs.

  • PRNEWS’ Top Women in PR Award – Rising Star (2021) 
  • 2018-2019 Faculty Service Award for the College of Journalism and Communications
  • Associate Director, Student Engagement at The Agency (2019 – Present) 
  • Faculty Adviser for Alpha Productions; Hispanic Public Relations Student Association; National Millennial and Gen Z Communities (2018 – Present) 
  • Advisory Council Member, Institute of Hispanic-Latinx Cultures (January 2021 – Present)
  • Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee (2019 – Present)
  • CJC Onboarding Task Force (2020)

Elizabeth Calienes — Advertising Department representative

Delaware born Cuban-American; has lived in Miami, NYC, LA, Connecticut, Puerto Rico and the island of Dominica in the West Indies; Gainesville resident since 2012; joined CJC in 2019; Advertising lecturer and director of CJC’s Professional Master’s Program. 

  • Worked 20+ years in a variety of creative and strategic roles in advertising, shopper marketing, film, magazines, graphic design and interior design
  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • CJC Graduate Committee
  • CJC Graduate Division Combination Degree Task Force
  • CJC Graduate Division Admissions Waitlist Task Force
  • CJC Advertising Creative Certificate Task Force

Dr. Katrice Graham — Assistant Dean for Student Experiences – Director of the Knight Division for Scholarships and Student Inclusion 

Miami native; former Fortune 500 insurance company supervisor and web development company project manager. Continually pushes the limits of holistic student development and equity and inclusion in Higher Education.

  • President of the Association of Black Faculty and Staff
  • UF Affinity Group Leaders
  • UF HR Stronger Together Series Presenter
  • Black Culture Living and Learning Community Housing Committee
  • UF African American Display Committee
  • MCDA Inclusive Excellence in Diversity Staff Award
  • University of Florida Student Conduct Committee
  • Black Student Affairs Task Force
  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee

Dr. Spiro Kiousis — CJC Executive Associate Dean

Southern California born, Central California raised; professor of public relations; produced over 170 refereed journal articles, book chapters, books, conference papers/presentations. 

  • Research interests include political public relations, political communication and digital communication 
  • Specifically interested in interplay among political public relations efforts, news media content, and public opinion in traditional, interactive mass-mediated contexts 
  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • CJC Deans and Chairs
  • CJC College Council
  • CJC Faculty Welfare and Development
  • CJC Faculty Senate 
  • Commission of Public Relations Education
  • The Alliance of Schools and Colleges of Communication and Journalism
  • Several journal editorial boards

Keisha Reynolds — CJC Director of Human Resources

Ft. Lauderdale born and raised — daughter of school teachers. More than 18 years of HR experience, including 7 years with UFHR managing employee relations, coordinating strategic HR services for the Health Science Center, Business Affairs and UF Police Department.

  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • CJC College Council
  • CJC Deans and Chairs
  • CJC Faculty, Welfare and Development Committee
  • CJC Recruitment and Hiring Task Force 
  • CJC Onboarding Task Force

Iman Zawahry — Media Production, Management and Technology Department and Faculty Senate representative

Panama City, Florida born and raised. Professor of film production; one of the first hijabi American-Muslim filmmakers in the U.S. Worked on numerous films that have played at over 100 venues worldwide; works to amplify the underrepresented female voice. 

  • Emmy Award-winning short film “Tough Crowd” qualified her as a finalist in the NBC Comedy Short Cuts to pitch a sitcom with NBC executives 
  • Recipient of the coveted Princess Grace Award for her film “Undercover” 
  • Selected as a Lincoln Center New York Film Festival Artist Academy Fellow in 2015 
  • Collaborated with the nonprofit Islamic Scholarship Fund to create the first ever American Muslim film grant, where she currently serves as director 
  • Wrote and directed her debut feature film “Americanish” with a majority female crew that won the audience awards at CAAMFest and New York Asian Film Festival
    •  Americanish has won three audience awards
  • CJC Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (IDE) Committee
  • CJC Faculty Senate member
  • CJC Faculty/Mentor of the year 2020-2021
  • UF Most Inspirational Woman 2019

Governing Documents