October 25, 2022
Oakland University Industrial and Systems Engineering Professor Richard Olawoyin has been appointed chair of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) Advisory Council at the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).
ABET is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that accredits college and university programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering and engineering technology.
As chair of the IDEA Council, Dr. Olawoyin will lead efforts to promote inclusivity, diversity, and equity within ABET, its activities, its volunteer base, and its accredited programs. The appointment, made by ABET President S.K. Ramesh, is effective for one year and renewable for up to three years.
“The appointment presents an opportunity to work with other council leaders, ABET commissions, and the Board of Directors to promote the values of ‘one ABET,’” said Dr. Olawoyin. “The ability to contribute to building a community focused on global excellence through the development and maintenance of standards for the accreditation process is remarkable. The contributions we make foster confidence and help to create a safer, more resilient, sustainable world, and also help to calibrate the future of work.”
Prior to being named chair of the IDEA Council, Dr. Olawoyin served as an ABET training mentor, a role in which experienced program evaluators are nominated and approved by ABET member societies to guide program evaluator candidates through the training process to become program evaluators. He also served as an ABET commissioner, working with other commissioners to review educational programs and make accreditation decisions.
In addition, Dr. Olawoyin currently serves as an executive committee member and team chair of ABET’s Applied and Natural Science Accreditation Commission; a support facilitator on the Program Evaluator Candidates (PEVC) Training Subcommittee, which is part of the ABET Accreditation Council Training Committee; and as chair of the ABET Accreditation Council Training Committee - Programs with Online Components.
Dr. Olawoyin added: “The ABET accreditation of STEM programs is quintessential for supporting STEM education equity that would bridge the representation gap, nurture the next generation of innovators, and help learners develop modern skills for providing inclusive solutions to real-world problems. Improving STEM education by considering the needs and opportunities for inclusion, diversity, and equity is important from the global to local levels.”
Founded in 1932, ABET has accredited programs at nearly 900 colleges and universities worldwide. For more information, visit abet.org.