Each year Skelmersdale & Ormskirk College hold a Celebrating Diversity competition. The purpose of the competition is to reward those staff and students who have made a special contribution to recognise and accept the differences between people and promoting mutual respect and understanding.
College Principal, Louise Dawson explained “At Skelmersdale & Ormskirk College we want everyone to feel welcome – whatever their gender, age, race, disability or any other factor. We want to create an environment in which all feel valued as individuals. The competition helps us to think of new and creative ways in which we can achieve this.”
Staff and students have worked on their entries throughout the year and the competition was judged by the Principal at the beginning of June. To recognise the winners for their efforts there is an Awards ceremony which is also hosted by the Principal. This years ceremony took place at the college’s Westbank Campus in which staff and students were proud to accept their awards from Rachel Brown, current England International and Everton Ladies Goalkeeper who also works as an Education Officer with the Liverpool based club along with her Everton FC Foundation colleague, Sports Development Coach, Andy Gray.
Jenny Littlewood, Head of Performance and Standards at the college and organiser of the competition commented “We are delighted with the wide range of winners of both staff and students. One important factors in choosing the winning entries is which entries have the potential to have the most positive long term impact on staff and students across the college”.
This years winners included:
Staff & Student Category
Winner – A consortium coordinated by Elaine Killey (Programme Leader Tutorials) including Foundation staff and learners, Estates & Facilities, Sports, Key Skills and Marketing staff for a term long series of activities celebrating a range of national identities and cultures.
Runner Up – Bricklaying tutor, Ray Lyon’s work with Bricklaying learners aimed at celebrating both male and female participation.
Staff Category
Winner – Lesley Mugan (Professional Development Coach) for the development of the innovative staff equality and diversity online training programme and for enabling all online programmes to be ‘voiced’ increasing accessibility.
Runner Up – Marketing & School Liaison Coordinator, Dawn Hughes’ College Newsletter for School Leavers aimed at challenging stereotypes and promoting non traditional career routes to potential college students.