Return to Main Menu

Earl B. Higgins Achievement in Diversity Award Waldrep 'stongest student advocate at MUSC' Tom Waldrep, director of MUSC's Center for Academic Excellence and the Writing Center, is the winner of the 2001 Earl B. Higgins Achievement in Diversity Award at MUSC. The award is presented annually by the Office of Diversity to an MUSC employee who has made exemplary strides in promoting diversity.    Tom Waldrep accepts the Earl B. Higgins Achievement in Diversity Award from Dr. Thaddeus Bell, director of the Office of Diversity, left, and Dr. Ray Greenberg, MUSC president. “Waldrep is an extremely sensitive person with an unparalleled attention to fairness and to the uniqueness of every person competing in this world for achievement,” said Gilbert B. Bradham, M.D., dean of students.   Waldrep has a lifelong history of encouraging diversity. As a young man in 1963, he stood on the steps of the University of Alabama with two African American students as they attempted to enroll. Later in his professional life, he designed, organized and chaired a series of summer institutes, “Teaching African American Literature: Theory and Practice,” for college English teachers. These workshops had the highest attendance of any institute sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English.   In 1994 Waldrep founded MUSC's Writing Center, bringing national acclaim to MUSC as the only independent medical school in the country with a writing center. He and his staff are dedicated to ensuring that students of diverse backgrounds become health care professionals who can effectively communicate with a diverse patient population.   In 1997, the Dean's Council selected Waldrep to create and direct the Center for Academic Excellence, a program designed to provide academic support to all students in all six colleges. In this role, he has worked to help students recognize that their diverse backgrounds and learning styles are valuable resources to their becoming health care professionals.   “Tom Waldrep's presence on the faculty at MUSC has had a direct impact on my decision to remain enrolled. I have a special appreciation for people like him who recognize the challenges of diversity in both the medical and academic setting and inspire students to incorporate the principles of diversity into practice,” said Sarah Ann Johnson, an MUSC graduate student and registered nurse.   Waldrep serves on the planning and curriculum committees of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Summer Institute for the Office of Diversity and also works with that office on the annual High School Apprenticeship Program. He is a key participant in the Post-baccalaureate Reapplication Program, designed to prepare minority students to enter either the College of Dental Medicine or the College of Medicine. He also works with educationally disadvantaged students from area high schools.  Waldrep has been called the strongest student advocate at MUSC.