Want to hear a fishing story? Ask Collins Byrd. Want to hear a traveling story? Ask Collins. Want to hear a teamwork story? Ask Collins. As an itinerant storyteller, Collins has a story for just about any occasion. One story he’s been telling his whole life is the benefits of working and living in a diverse community. Countless students have heard Collins share his stories because Collins is the Assistant Dean for Enrollment Management in the College of Law. 

What does storytelling have to do with distinguished leadership in diversity, equity, and inclusion? For Iowa Law, storytelling connects people from all kinds of backgrounds. Want proof? The Iowa Law Enrollment Team enrolls a student body that comes from more than half of the states in the union, from nearly 100 different undergraduate institutions, and almost 20% of its student body identifies as minority. Collins spends a good deal of time with students from underrepresented groups through outreach programs that focus on historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and other programs that provide support to first-generation college students. These students bring experiences and cultures not readily known in Eastern Iowa.  

Not only is the student body diverse – it’s broadly inclusive. Its students come from families that include factory workers, bus drivers, nurses, doctors, engineers, artists, members of the military, farmers, lawyers, and many more fields. The diversity of its students fosters a rich learning environment where real life intersects with the study of law. How did we achieve this level of diversity and inclusion? Collins Byrd and his storytelling played a large part, as it has since he got to Iowa Law in 2005. 

As Dean Kevin Washburn put it, in nominating Collins:  

This leadership award is about the ability to create long-standing change. Collins never slows for a minute when he is recruiting students to Iowa Law. Through his hard work, even on weekends and holidays, he spends countless hours working to create long-lasting change. 

As with other nominees for this award, Collins Byrd not only talks about diversity, equity, and inclusion - he lives it every day so that all of us can embody it someday soon. The College of Law community is very grateful for Collins and his storytelling.