Darden Alumnus Honored for Commitment to Closing Opportunity Gaps for Minorities

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business community played key roles at a recent event celebrating the African-American Teaching Fellows, an organization that works to recruit and promote diverse teachers in Charlottesville and Albemarle County public schools.

Darden alumnus Toan Nguyen (MBA ’94) was honored with the John E. Baker Legacy Award for his work as co-founder of the Community Investment Collaborative, a micro-lending organization assisting minorities with training, mentorship and loans to launch their own businesses.

Darden Professor Martin Davidson delivered the keynote at the event, noting the transformative impact black teachers can have in the classroom, according to an account in Cville Tomorrow.

Davidson, Darden’s senior associate dean and global chief diversity officer, said he had few black teachers when he was in grade school. “The ones I had really made a difference,” he said.

Davidson said he is concerned by a recent trend of public schools becoming more racially homogeneous due to residential segregation. “It is important to create learning environments where all children have a chance to succeed,” he said.

Read the full story in Cville Tomorrow.