The recipients of the 2009 Rutgers University Human Dignity Awards are active on many fronts: advocating for poor people, Latinos, and Palestinians; and making the university more sensitive to issues involving diversity and gay rights.

The awards were presented April 16 during a ceremony at Winants Hall. Sponsored by the Committee to Advance our Common Purposes, the awards honor individuals or groups demonstrating extraordinary achievement and commitment to diversity, intercultural relations, and social justice at Rutgers and in the local community, state, and nation.

“These are members of the Rutgers community who deserve our thanks and emulation,” said President Richard L. McCormick, who presented the awards. “We want to say to everyone that these are the kinds of individuals – and the kinds of accomplishments – that we value.”

This year’s recipients are:

The Association for Public Interest Law

Camden Campus

Camden law students who are members of the Association for Public Interest Law have provided legal services to the poor, displaced, and disenfranchised. During their spring breaks, they have worked with those who are disproportionately neglected in the U.S. legal system. Their commitment to advocacy of disenfranchised citizens exemplifies the spirit of the Human Dignity Award.

Sandra Rocio Castro

Associate Director, Center for Latino Arts and Culture

New Brunswick Campus

Sandra Rocio Castro is a leading advocate in the promotion of intercultural relations among students, faculty, and staff at the New Brunswick Campus. She has served as curator of many rich exhibits and programs on Latina/o visual culture. Through her practice of good citizenship at Rutgers and beyond, she has contributed to a thriving and culturally diverse community.

The Committee on Diversity of the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology

New Brunswick Campus

The Committee on Diversity has been responsible for many annual and institutionalized programs that have been developed to foster a more inclusive environment at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP). The committee ensures that those of diverse backgrounds feel connected to each other and the larger community, and are nurtured through each phase of their development at GSAPP.

Beryl Satter

Professor of History, Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Newark Campus

Professor Satter has succeeded in making lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) faculty, staff, and students more visible, in order to create a significantly more inclusive and hospitable campus at Newark. Her efforts to reach out to others have succeeded in creating a community more welcoming of LGBT students.

Manal Ramadan

President, Palestinian American Organization

Newark Campus

Manal Ramadan has demonstrated extreme diligence in promoting an awareness of Palestinian culture and involving her organization, which she founded, in the student life of the Newark Campus.