UW System honors UW-Madison LGBT Center Director for Outstanding Achievement

MADISON, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin System has announced the 2015 recipients of the Dr. P.B. Poorman Award for Outstanding Achievement on Behalf of LGBTQ People. Gabe Javier, Assistant Dean of Students and Director of UW-Madison’s LGBT Campus Center, is among 13 recipients to be honored.

The P.B. Poorman Award was established to publicly recognize UW System faculty, staff, students, or community members for their excellence in advocacy, research, teaching, or service on behalf of the LGBTQ communities. The award honors the memory and legacy of Dr. Paula B. Poorman, a faculty member at UW-Whitewater who played an instrumental role in the foundation of the UW System’s Inclusivity Initiative.

UW-Madison Assistant Dean of Students and LGBT Center Director Gabe Javier
UW-Madison Assistant Dean of Students and LGBT Center Director Gabe Javier.

This year marks the expansion of the P.B. Poorman Award from a single recipient for the entire UW System to honoring a recipient from each institution.

“The UW System is committed to providing a safe, welcoming atmosphere for all our students, faculty, and staff. Those we are honoring with this award remind us how individual contributions can make a real difference in promoting respect and understanding within the university and the broader community,” said UW System President Ray Cross.

Recipients will be formally recognized on Oct. 9 in Madison at an awards ceremony and luncheon, held in conjunction with UW System’s presentation of the Outstanding Women of Color in Education Awards.

The honorees for the 2015 Dr. P.B. Poorman Award for Outstanding Achievement on Behalf of LGBTQ People are:

  • Lisa Hager, Associate Professor, English, UW Colleges (UW-Waukesha)
  • Christopher Jorgenson, Director, Women’s & LGBTQ Resource Center, UW-Eau Claire
  • Stacie Christian, Coordinator, Inclusive Excellence & Pride Center, UW-Green Bay
  • Jay Lokken, Senior Major Grants Officer, University Advancement, UW-La Crosse
  • Gabriel Javier, Director of LGBT Campus Center and Assistant Dean of Students, UW-Madison
  • Roy Badger, Project Manager, University Information Technology Services, UW-Milwaukee
  • Liz Cannon, Director, LGBTQ Resource Center, UW-Oshkosh
  • Kim White, Advisor, Advising & Career Center, UW-Parkside
  • Todd Savage, Associate Professor, Counseling and School Psychology, UW-River Falls
  • Andrew Stoner, Assistant Professor, Communication, UW-Stevens Point
  • Jeanne Foley, Professor, Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, UW-Stout
  • Debbie Cheslock, Student Program Manager for Gender Equity Resource Center, UW-Superior
  • Cynthia Konrad, LGBT Coordinator, Student Affairs and Academic Affairs, UW-Whitewater

UW institutions submit nominations for the awards, which highlight each recipient’s contributions to diversity, equity and Inclusive Excellence. Those contributions may include advocacy, activism or scholarship that has fostered social justice and organizational change; positive transformation within their institutions and/or community to achieve the goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion; and efforts to improve the climate for and visibility of LGBTQ people.

For more information about the awards and past recipients, see https://www.wisconsin.edu/grants-awards/poorman-award/.