University Relations
By: Ed Brennen

Amanda Baptiste grew up in Taunton, Massachusetts, a city rich in her Portuguese heritage. When she arrived at UMass Lowell four years ago to pursue a degree in exercise physiology, she quickly identified with the cultural diversity of the city — and her new school.
 
"I felt very welcome on campus," says Baptiste, a distance runner on the UML women's cross country and track and field teams. "But there's always room to grow, no matter where you are."
 
Which is why last summer, when Director of Athletics Peter Casey asked Baptiste if she would like to represent students on a new Athletics Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee that was being created in partnership with the Office of Multicultural Affairs, she didn't hesitate.
 
"I'm all in. What do you need from me?" said Baptiste, now a graduate student in the School of Education.
 
Co-chaired by Leslie Wong, dean of equity and inclusion in the Office of Academic and Student Affairs, and Ruben Sanca, assistant athletics director for administration, the 25-person committee got to work last fall identifying ways to help River Hawk coaches, staff and student-athletes address systemic inequities.
 
"It's important to have the information right there for our students to be able to quickly access so they can reach out for help if they need it," Sanca says.
 
While work on the webpage was under way, the Athletics Department was contacted by Athlete Ally, a nonprofit LGBTQ+ athletic advocacy group. According to its Athletic Equality Index (AEI), which measures LGBTQ+ inclusion policies and practices of all 360-plus NCAA Division I athletics departments across the country, UML ranked No. 140 with a score of 40 out of 100.
 
"That made us go back and see what we could be doing better," Sanca says.
 
Athletics took a number of steps, including adding resources to the webpage such as an Inclusive Fan Code of Conduct and a Bias Reporting link, and encouraging more staff members and student-athletes to participate in Ally Space training. The result? UML became one of just 14 Div. I athletic programs in the country to receive a perfect index score of 100 this May, joining the likes of Ohio State, Boston University and the University of Southern California. UML is the first school to achieve 100 in the America East Conference, where the average score is 43.

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