About

Erica Acosta was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from the State University of New York Buffalo with a Bachelor's Degree of Arts in Spanish. In 2008, she moved to Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, working for Misericordia University as the Multicultural Student Outreach Coordinator. While working for Misericordia she obtained a Master's of Science degree in Organizational Management with a concentration in Human Resources. She found her passion for diversity, equity & social justice education. This led to the development of Misericordia University's Multicultural Education program (MU/ME). She created and developed innovative programming to educate the community on cross-cultural topics and created diversity awareness. Currently, she is the Director of Diversity Initiatives at Wilkes University. She provides support and services for undergraduate students from the BIPOC community, as well as, facilitates and coordinates efforts across the university to enhance diversity and enrich the academic, social, and cultural experiences of members of the campus community. Her search for ways to engage students on campus led her to develop a diversity certificate program for undergraduates. With the D.I.V.E. (Difference, Inclusion Value Each other) certificate, the program offers students opportunities to show their passion for diversity and inclusion in their campus community. She also created a Diversity & Inclusion student conference where local colleges and universities attend a day-long conference about equity and social justice topics. Erica has an MBA from Wilkes University & her Master of Science from Misericordia University. Her passion for diversity and inclusion has led her to take a leadership role in the city of Wilkes-Barre. She currently serves on various boards that she is passionate about such as Dress for Success Luzerne County, Maternal and Family Health Services, The Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber of Commerce, and Northeast PA Diversity Education Consortium.

2024 Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Forum

• The 'Death' of DEI in the Workplace with Dan Kimbrough