Dr. Lela A. Llorens Award of Excellence for Diversity Equity & Inclusion

Description and purpose

• To honor a member of the Association who has led a professional activity that addresses health disparities, health equity, social determinants of health, and/or institutional, structural, or systemic racism in healthcare, education, community practice, or clinical practice.
• To enable members to benefit from new knowledge, innovative perspectives, and significant developments in the profession related to initiatives, programs, or strategies that provide systemic change and/or advance DEIJAB principles in scholarship, leadership and/or advocacy, program or policy development, education, community practice, or clinical practice in occupational therapy

Nomination submissions must address at least one of the following categories:

1. Scholarship: Evidence of scholarly activities (i.e., discovery, integration, teaching and learning, application) that clearly identify the advancement of DEIJAB principles in the occupational therapy profession and has had a lasting impact through dissemination into clinical practice, curriculum development or enhancement, education, and professional development.
   
   Highest score: Evidence includes, but is not limited to, publications, presentations, conference proceedings, books, papers, education/professional development programming that highlights outcomes documenting evidence for this criterion. Scholarship initiatives should significantly promote and highlight DEIJAB initiatives that have shown positive impacts in underrepresented or under-resourced populations over a sustained period.
   
   
2. Leadership, Advocacy & Policy: Evidence of leadership, advocacy and policy initiatives or interventions that significantly promote and/or advance DEIJAB initiatives and highlight and/or improves health, well-being, and a sense of belonging.
   
   Highest score: Evidence of leadership, advocacy, and policy resulting from activities that raise awareness of how the occupational therapy profession has impacted marginalized, underrepresented and/or under resourced persons, groups, and populations. This includes but is not limited to elected or appointed volunteer services, advocacy and policy efforts, public service, and/or strategic partnerships that address the needs of marginalized, underrepresented and/or under-resourced persons, groups, and populations. Leadership/advocacy initiatives should significantly promote & highlight DEIJAB initiatives that have shown positive impacts in marginalized, underrepresented and/or under-resourced persons, groups, or populations over a sustained period.
   
   
3. Occupational Therapy Practice: Evidence of lasting impact on the practice and delivery of occupational therapy services to marginalized, underrepresented and/or under-resourced persons, groups or populations as evidenced by the dissemination of DEIJAB principles in culturally responsive occupational therapy clinical or community practice.
   
   Highest score: Evidence of occupational therapy services that utilize an occupational and/or social justice lens to address the unique needs of marginalized, underrepresented and/or under-resourced populations. This includes but is not limited to occupational therapy services that address DEIJAB barriers to occupational justice.
   
   
4. Program Development and Capacity Building: Evidence of a program(s) that address the needs of marginalized, underrepresented and/or under-resourced populations utilizing DEIJAB principles. The program must show how it has used the social determinants of health to positively impact and/or improve the health and wellbeing of persons, groups, and populations.
   
   Highest score: Evidence of sustained engagement in a program(s) that highlight a recognizable impact within and/or adjacent to the occupational therapy profession such as health/human service agencies, local coalitions/initiatives, national/state/local branches – advocacy communities or organizations focused on social justice or social determinants of health.

Award Criteria

Overall Criteria:  Nomination submissions must address the following:


• Highlight how the nominee has utilized Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, Accessibility and Belonging (DEIJAB) principles to address the needs of marginalized, under resourced, and/or underrepresented persons, groups, and populations.
• Demonstrate how professional activity addresses health disparities, health equity, the social determinants of health, and/or institutional, structural, or systemic racism in healthcare, education, community practice, or clinical practice in occupational therapy.
• Relate to the providing systemic change and/or advancement of DEIJAB principles in scholarship, leadership and/or advocacy, program or policy development, education, community practice, or clinical practice in occupational therapy.

Specific information regarding award

• One award may be given per year.
• The individual selected for this award shall be notified by the President of the Association and shall, in turn, convey their acceptance before public announcement. Should the individual selected decline, the second ranked nominee who meets the award criteria shall be contacted by the President in the same manner described. If there is no qualifying second nominee, the award will not be given.
• The inaugural award recipient will be recognized at the Awards & Recognitions Ceremony on Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Orlando, Florida. Thereafter the award presentation would be made by the previous year’s recipient to demonstrate the continuity of community.
• Recipients of this award will design and deliver a presentation or demonstration of their creative choosing in honor of the Dr. Lela A. Llorens Award of Excellence for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion during the AOTA Annual Conference & Expo in the following year.
• A monetary gift shall be provided following delivery of the presentation or demonstration.
• The presentation delivery method is determined by the creativity of each award recipient, and may include for example, digital media, visual or performing arts, lecture, poetry, etc.