The Diversity Advisory Committee
The Diversity Advisory Committee (DAC) was established in 1999 and has an extensive history of addressing the diversity needs of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at UC Davis. DAC is comprised of faculty and trainees who work together on topics of cultural psychiatry, social justice, and health equity within and beyond the department of psychiatry. The group has multiple goals including:
- Ongoing enhancement and development of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI) curriculum and research in cultural psychiatry
- Recruitment and retention of underrepresented in medicine (URM) medical students, residents, fellows, faculty and staff
- Increasing the awareness of the UC Davis health campus about issues related to cultural psychiatry and mental health equity
DAC works closely with the Office for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and the Office of Student and Resident Diversity at UC Davis Health to achieve these goals.
Our activities
DAC organizes and hosts educational events and discussion topics with experts related to JEDI, including:
- Annual Luke and Grace Kim Visiting Professor
- Cultural Psychiatry Movie Series
- Departmental Equity Subcommittee
- Recruitment and retention activities
Accomplishments of the DAC
Recipient of the 2018 UC Davis Chancellor’s Achievement Award for Diversity and Community
Recipient of the of 2010 American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training (AADPRT) Model Curriculum Award for Cultural Psychiatry
33 percent increase in URM medical students matching into the UC Davis Psychiatry Residency Training Program in the past 4 years
Number of URM faculty in the Department has increased three-fold in the past 2 years
At a glance
The Luke and Grace Kim Endowed Professor in Cultural Psychiatry
The Luke and Grace Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry is the only endowed cultural psychiatry professorship in the nation. This professorship supports teaching, research and public service within the department with the goal of fostering academic excellence and innovative research in the field of cultural psychiatry.
Ruth Shim, M.D., M.P.H., the current holder of the professorship, is a national leader in mental health equity, social justice in psychiatry, and social determinants of mental health. Francis Lu, M.D., was the first holder of the professorship, and is the Luke & Grace Kin Professor, Emeritus. He is a national expert in cultural psychiatry and diversity in psychiatry.
