Alessandra Cipriani-Detres B.A. ’21, was awarded the 2021 Excellence in Diversity & Inclusion in International Education (EDIIE) award in the category of Global Student Leadership at the Undergraduate level by Diversity Abroad.
The award honors one undergraduate student in the U.S. who has global education experience and has made significant contributions to increasing awareness of and access to global opportunities for diverse students at their home institution.
Diversity Abroad is an international membership organization dedicated to inspiring and supporting global educational programs to support the academic success, interpersonal development and career readiness of students from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds.
Cipriani-Detres began as an Outreach Intern in the U’s Learning Abroad Office and then worked her way up to Peer Advisor by the time she graduated from her undergraduate studies. In her role as Peer Advisor, she carried out administrative tasks and worked closely with the office’s Diversity Team on projects focused on diversity, equity and inclusion in international education. She was nominated for her contributions to research, conducted by full-time office staff, on the experiences of transfer students at the U accessing international education. Her work helped Learning Abroad better understand the challenges and difficulties faced by transfer students as they navigate the U and accessing international education. She was recognized at Global Inclusion 2021, Diversity Abroad’s annual conference.
“My journey of making higher education more equitable is just beginning. This award motivates me to continue to transform my knowledge and experiences into action in order to better support underrepresented college students,” said Cipriani-Detres. She is now a first-year graduate student at Boston College and working toward an M.A. in Higher Education.
“Through the EDIIE Awards, Diversity Abroad recognizes the institutions, organizations and individuals who are addressing educational inequities and striving to advance diversity, equity and inclusion in the field of global education. We congratulate the 2021 EDIIE Award recipients for their work to democratize global education and ultimately unlock the doors of opportunity for the students they serve,” says Andrew Gordon, CEO & Founder of Diversity Abroad.