Pay it 1964WARD – Dr. Gladys Hankins believes giving is a principle-driven act

Union’s Pay it 1964WARD campaign is underway to make a difference in the lives of our students. At UI&U, 100 percent of funds designated to scholarships goes directly to the student. Throughout 2020, we will feature a number of Union donors – alumni, trustees, friends, and others – who support Union and our goals to transform lives and communities. Please join them through Changing the Faces of Education – Pay it 1964WARD today.

Dr. Gladys Gossett Hankins is a Union alumna, Board of Trustee member, author, speaker, diversity expert, and global management consultant. In the Q & A below, she discusses why she invests in Union and explains why she believes in the principle of giving back.

Q: We are launching the Pay it 1964Ward campaign to raise $1,964,000 to support our students achieve their dreams. You are a trustee, an alumna, and have been a long time giver. Can you tell us why you give to Union? Why do you choose to invest in Union’s students?
A: I believe in the principle of giving back. That means giving monetary support to the educational institutions from which I received my degrees. I have done so annually since I received my associate degree from a two-year Catholic college. I received my bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Rockhurst, a Jesuit university, and my Ph.D. from Union Institute & University in 1994. I was a non-traditional student for each one of my degrees, studying at night while working full-time, which makes me appreciate my alma maters even more.

I am so proud of the truly growth filled education I received at Union when studying for my Ph.D. As a trustee, it is an honor for me to join the commencements where I see the joy on the faces of the graduates, and I am always reminded of my own joyous Union experience and graduation. Union’s Ph.D. program gave me the chance to study, learn, and earn my degree while continuing my full-time job, when other schools in this area required me to be a full-time, non-working student. I feel my donation helps Union directly as it is applied to where it is most needed to benefit students. I would love all Union’s alumni to express their gratitude toward Union with an annual monetary gift.

Q: Union is known for its commitment to social justice. Does that aspect of the university influence your decision to invest in Union and its students? If so, how?
A: I care deeply and share Union’s commitment to address such an important and necessary issue. I have personally been able to use my Ph.D. focus in Organizational Behavior and Development to develop and conduct programs on diversity that have been attended by thousands of people in over 20 countries, with respect to social justice matters, particularly pertaining to organizational effectiveness and diversity and inclusion. I trust my contributions help other students with their goals.

Q: Union’s goal is to transform lives and communities. Can you share how this goal may have impacted you?
A: In the work I did at Procter & Gamble, as well as the consulting I continued to do after my retirement, my Ph.D. gave me automatic acceptance as an expert in the areas I have consulted in. I also authored a book on diversity, Diversity Blues: How To Shake ‘Em, that has been made available through the public library system globally. I believe that all Union graduates may have made equally substantial contributions to social justice in significant ways.

Q: What else would you tell prospective donors about why they should give to Union?
A: I would say to alumni, “You have a vested interest in the continuing success of this university. As long as UI&U continues to be accredited and ranked, you will always be able to be proud of the institution from which you graduated. Union is primarily a tuition-driven institution. But having the benefit of large numbers of donors, as well as people who bequeath substantial amounts, guarantees that Union can continue to exist and educate world-changing students.”

Giving is a principle-driven act. If every one of Union’s 20,000 graduates were able to give just $100 per year, that $2 million would ensure that Union will continue to serve students who are attracted to the benefits of our fine university.

Please donate today at this link Changing the Faces of Education – Pay it 1964WARD campaign.

About Dr. Hankins

Dr. Gladys Gossett Hankins is an author, speaker, diversity expert, and global management consultant. She holds a PhD degree in Organizational Behavior and Development. A former corporate executive and adjunct college professor, she is president of Telora Victor, Inc., a management consulting organization specializing in organizational effectiveness and diversity. Her clients have included the Federal Government, major corporations, small businesses and non-profit organizations. Gladys has coached top management on the issues associated with managing a diverse workforce. She has done extensive work in diversity and has consulted across the global community, creating and delivering workshops throughout North America, South America, Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Western and Eastern Europe.

A proven leader in designing breakthrough initiatives, her programs have been called life transforming and credited with changing organizational cultures and shaping their diversity initiatives. She has received numerous testimonials on her personal effect and impact on individuals and organizations.

An author, Gladys has four published works including a business book on diversity entitled Diversity Blues, How to Shake ‘Em, a best-seller that deals with racism and sexism in organizations, and what to do about them.

Her fiction works are mystery novels, written under her pen name, GiGi Gossett, and set in Cincinnati. By Any Other Name addresses race, privilege and betrayal, some of life’s most beguiling situations. Her most recent publication, The Midwife Factor is an international mystery in which past secrets are revealed as two girls, separated at birth attempt to find their way back to each other.

She collaborated with Yolanda Webb to write a “tween” mystery entitled A Twisy Girls Mystery: The Case of the Dropped Pearl. Gladys continues to write both fiction and non-fiction. All of her publications can be obtained from Amazon.com and other electronic booksellers. They are also available at public libraries.

She is a life member of the NAACP, a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and The Links, Incorporated and has a long history of community service, currently serving on several non-profit boards.