This month, the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) hired a new director of marketing and communications. Pamela Bishop has joined the team to develop the EDI brand and enhance collaboration throughout campus and into the community.

Bishop is an experienced marketing professional with a distinguished background in brand management, advertising and marketing. She has worked with brands such as BMW and AT&T Inc. and has a background in multicultural marketing. With EDI, she hopes to use her skills to educate people around diversity issues so they can make a difference in the world.

“Part of making a difference is not only what you know academically, but how you do your job and how you view the world,” said Bishop. “My goal is to really help people view the world with more appreciation and respect for people who are different from them.”

Inaugural vice president for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Mary Ann Villarreal, said Bishop brings the expertise to weave the values of equity, diversity and inclusion into the fabric of the U community, both on the academic and health sciences campuses.

“Pamela brings a tremendous talent for developing plans that will help us reframe conversations on our campus and let more people know what types of things EDI is working on to ensure that all students, staff and faculty know they belong on our campus,” said Villarreal. “We are building on a foundation of programming that informs our campus on these issues and Pamela’s role allows us to effectively share these efforts with a broader audience.”

Bishop said she is looking forward to creating more opportunities for members of the campus community to learn about EDI and how these issues truly impact everyone.

“It’s really a business imperative today,” said Bishop. “Whether you are going to be a doctor, engineer or a teacher, it’s an imperative for you to understand people who don’t look or think like you because the world is becoming increasingly diverse. I hope I can lend to that conversation and help people feel more comfortable having tough conversations and ask questions where they may not understand.”

In addition to her work at the U, Bishop serves the community as a board member and committee member for several nonprofit organizations including The Junior League of Salt Lake City. She moved to Utah with her husband and teenage son about 18 months ago from Atlanta.