Shirley Gulley, who goes by Shirl, has been a staff member of UNT since August 2016 and currently offices in the Biological Sciences Department. In addition to her duties as a Senior Administrative Specialist, she's been actively serving on the College of Science's Diversity and Inclusion Council, formed by Dean Gao in the summer of 2020.

"I think having an open dialogue can help us acknowledge and respect each other's differences and bring about change for the better," said Shirl. "The beauty of a college campus is that we come from all walks of life. Those differences should be honored and appreciated."

Shirl is driven by her passion to see positive change in the world and her commitment extends far beyond her work at UNT. She's seen firsthand how communities can be neglected and discriminated against to the detriment of their health and happiness. Growing up in a small town in Nevada county, Arkansas, Shirl witnessed her community struggle without a municipal water system, having to rely on individual wells for their water. The wells, which can harbor E.coli and other bacteria, are linked to serious health issues.

Nevada county isn't alone. Millions of Americans across the country lack reasonable access to clean drinking water, and there has been a significant movement in recent years to call for equity-focused investment to address these issues, which significantly impacts low income neighborhoods and communities of color.

After purchasing a house in the same area where she grew up, Shirl realized how desperate the situation had become and sought support in her local church to help rally for change.

"My first meeting for the project was June 24, 2019," she said. "This wasn't a last minute thought to do something because it had been a problem for years, but it's easy to feel removed from a situation when you aren't experiencing it on a daily basis. When I decided to intervene, I knew one person alone couldn't make the change."

After nearly a year of petitioning for funding, on July 29, 2020, Shirl received the phone call that Nevada county had been approved for a $558,162 grant from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission for new water construction. The now funded project is on track to begin construction soon and will take 9-12 months to complete.

"Working on this project, I learned so much about equality, fairness, separation, and exclusion," said Shirl. "Cities and representatives need to focus on changing policy to serve the entire populace, not just those in positions of wealth or power."

She's hopeful that this change in her hometown means a better quality of life for everyone.

"Clean water is a human right, and essential for healthy living," said Shirl, who isn't yet finished advocating for her hometown. "Next we'll be working on better roads. I've approached this issue already and got a little patchwork done, but we have a long way to go."

Along with her cohorts in the COS Diversity and Inclusion Council, Shirl hopes to see change at the University of North Texas too. "I want to see a more inclusive educational community here, as well as more interaction from UNT with Southeast Denton," she said. "I would like to see recruitment workshops at the MLK center and more tutoring opportunities; not just during the pandemic but as an ongoing effort to help struggling students."

In order to tackle multiple areas of interest, the COS Council of Diversity and Inclusion is comprised of several subcommittees that meet more frequently than the full council. Shirl's CDI subcommittee is called "Being Heard," which is working toward overall transparency regarding the initiatives of the Council and ensuring that everyone who wants to contribute to the discussion can participate. This includes building a new webpage where community members can find Council information and meeting minutes, as well as learn about the subcommittees, council members, goals, and projects in progress.

"Everyone should be willing to listen to what others have to say," said Shirl. "Just being a part of the conversation gives me hope."

While the webpage is still underway, the COS Council of Diversity and Inclusion invites members of the College of Science community to submit their anonymous concerns, thoughts, and ideas to the Council here: https://unt.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_02HBSdgxRVrcOd7