portrait of Charlie Foster

Charlie Foster serves as the Special Assistant to the Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Inclusion and focusing on key initiatives, programs and practices that address key goals in the office’s strategic plan, N2025, and commitments to actions towards racial equity.

Foster works to provide culturally reflective student retention support, advocate for student social engagement, develop education on diversity awareness and institute resources in support of diversity enhancement scholarship recipients.

Foster has held roles that included a focus on low income, first-generation, underrepresented students, with an emphasis on utilizing her voice to teach all and to change lives through transformational programming. Working with students and professionals to better serve the community is a personal passion, while leveraging each conversation as an opportunity to alter how students view the notion of diversity and inclusion is also a priority. Her most recent efforts include a collaboration with campus stakeholders in support of a student-led campaign against hate and leading the Husker Dialogues program, which invites first year students to explore issues of diversity and inclusion.

Foster holds several leadership positions in local agencies and has presented at local, regional and national conferences on issues related to diversity and inclusion. Foster was the recipient of Leadership Lincoln’s Melvin W. Jones Mentoring Award, Omicron Delta Kappa Honor Society faculty/staff initiate, Mortar Board faculty/staff initiate, and the Fulfilling the Dream Award.