Káyọ̀dé Odùmbọ́ní, a PhD in English student, created the Care and Compassion awards to highlight how important values like empathy and consideration are in our English community, and to recognize department members who exemplify these qualities. 

Odùmbọ́ní derived the inspiration for the awards from a lecture series hosted by the Center for Ethics and Human Values in the fall of 2021. He attended the lectures over Zoom while he was in Nigeria for fieldwork. These lectures discussed the Shared Values Initiative of the university, which include those values Odùmbọ́ní chose to focus on. The values provide guidance to departments across the entire university to “reinforce our ethical culture and live our shared values to advance our core work of teaching, learning, research, and service.” His attendance of the lecture series with the center guaranteed him funding of $500 to use for a project of his choosing. 

The memory of the lecture was set aside in the fast-paced environment of graduate school. Odùmbọ́ní’s mental health suffered under the stressful demands of school, and in the fall of 2022, he experienced a depressive episode. During this period, he applied for medical leave and received care and kindness from department faculty and staff. Touched by this support, Odùmbọ́ní wanted to recognize the people who supported him through this hard time.  

As Odùmbọ́ní was working on figuring out a way to honor their compassion, he remembered his participation in the lecture series and the funding he received. He used it to commission plaques acknowledging department members who went above and beyond, showing care and compassion through tangible effort.  

Two department members whom Odumboni especially wanted to honor were Associate Professor Thomas Davis and Administrative Manager Wayne Lovely. He recalls the kindness of Davis during his time as Davis' graduate teaching assistant in the fall of 2022. Davis took over instructing Odumboni's recitation sections while Odumboni was on medical leaveHe also mentions a particularly memorable conversation with Administrative Manager Wayne Lovely. When speaking to Lovely about the exhaustive process of applying for medical leave, Lovely response really stayed with Odùmbọ́ní. ́He recalls, “Wayne said we trust you have a good reason to take time off. Just finish the application don’t worry about turning in the medical reports.” 

As Odùmbọ́ní was discussing his experience with his peers, he realized they had not always been as privileged as he was. This prompted him to start a conversation within the department. He says, “Graduate students occupy a liminal space in the department. We act as students to the professors and as teachers to the undergrads.” He wanted to take advantage of that unique position, to shine a light on the importance of these values. 

Odùmbọ́ní organized a meeting with undergraduate students and his peers to discuss faculty and staff members who exemplified the qualities of care and compassion. In consultation with peers and undergraduate students, and based on his own experience in the department, Odumboni recognized seven awardees. This project has helped him find the “highest level of self-fulfillment” in being able to facilitate this conversation and organize this project. 

Thank you to Káyọ̀dé Odùmbọ́ní and all the awardees for their commitment to creating a more understanding community. 

Winners 

Faculty: 
Thomas Davis 
Amanpal Garcha 
Pranav Jani 
Elizabeth Hewitt 
Jake Risinger 

Staff: 
Kathleen Griffin 
Wayne Lovely