Pelton’s Leadership in Diversity and Inclusion Recognized

President Lee Pelton is being honored for his commitment to diversity and inclusion with a Rosoff 20/20 Visionary Award, presented by The Ad Club at a May 2 gala in Boston.

Pelton, in prepared remarks, called the award “truly an honor, which I accept with humility and gratitude,” and recognized the many business, education, nonprofit, and arts leaders who also work tirelessly to diversify the organizations that make Boston what it is.

“At Emerson, inclusive excellence sits at the center of the work that we do,” Pelton said in the remarks. “It is deeply ingrained in the culture; it is organic and it is ever evolving as the College learns and grows.

“At Emerson, we know that this work is never fully done because it is not seen as a solution to a problem that needs to be fixed, but rather as a noble aspiration and an expression of our common humanity.”

Named for Arnold Worldwide founder Arnold Rosoff, the awards for the past 20 years have honored Greater Boston leaders who go above and beyond to make their organizations more creative and effective through a drive for inclusion.

In 1946, when then-Arnold Advertising was started, its founder didn’t want to call it Rosoff Advertising because he felt there was too much anti-Semitism in the world to make that name viable, said Mary Pasciucco, chief marketing officer of The Ad Club. Since that day, Rosoff had “always been sensitive to diversity issues,” she said.

This year, for the awards’ 20th anniversary, the committee wanted to expand on the definition of diversity and recognize that inclusion is no longer a mandate, it’s an “innovation tool.”

“Not only is it the right thing to do, it’s also the smart thing to do,” Pasciucco said.

Since coming to Emerson in 2011, Pelton has overseen the creation of a number of new programs and departments.

“In particular, [Pelton] has focused on increasing Emerson’s institutional capacity and effectiveness, while deepening community engagement. He has created new incentives and resources for faculty development, interdisciplinary, global engagement, and innovation; promoted and renewed the College’s civic leadership; and improved financial planning and operations,” according to the The Ad Club’s profile of Pelton. 

Also winning a 20/20 Visionary Award will be Bob Rivers, president and CEO of Eastern Bank. The awards will be given at the InterContinental Boston.