2015 AUCD Multicultural Council Award for Leadership in Diversity

Derrick Willis, MA

November 17, 2015

Accepting the award

This Award is presented to an Association member or group in recognition of exhibited leadership and commitment to advancing programs and practices aimed toward increasing the diversity, cultural, and/or linguistic competencies within a Center and the Network as a whole, and for significant contributions to further the cause of understanding the diverse needs of families seeking disability services.

Derrick Willis, MA

Institute for Human Development
University of Missouri Kansas City

In Appreciation of Your Ongoing Leadership and Dedication to
Diversity and Cultural and Linguistic Competence

"In 2000, charged with establishing an Office of Multicultural Affairs for Missouri's Department of Mental Health (DMH), Derrick recruited a taskforce of African-American mental health providers to explore disparities in access to care among people receiving DMH services. He used their findings as the foundation for a cultural competency awareness and skills program that continues to inform state policy and practice. Since then Derrick has successfully applied his expertise, passion, and persistence to an impressive range of projects and initiatives that target issues of diversity and disparity. In fact, Derrick is now leading a major initiative within UMKC called the Urban Mission that utilizes a research to practice framework that brings together the work of the university and the everyday functioning of our diverse urban communities."