FROM THE COMMUNICATOR
STRENGTH AND SUPPORT By Steve Sampsell (‘90 Journ)
T
he best thing about Gary Abdullah is his voice. And he definitely knows how and when to use it.
From the booming, deep, room-rattling laugh he unleashes among friends to the calm, quiet almost whisper he uses during one-on-one meetings with students who need a softer touch, Abdullah, the assistant dean for diversity and inclusion in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, invariably picks the correct approach for the situation. He had his discernment and wisdom put to the test almost daily during the past year and a half, though. Like everyone else, he was adapting to unknowns as the coronavirus pandemic impacted the campus, community and country. At the same time, matters of equity, justice and race — longstanding challenges ignited again by clear injustices and often flamed by less obvious personal beliefs and political differences — were providing an additional layer of complexity to almost everything. Every day brought another important and timely challenge that impacted students, faculty and staff in the Bellisario College, and that meant Abdullah, who wants every member of those audiences to feel welcome at Penn State, was a busy man. “He’s had the hardest job in the college this year, there’s no question in my mind,” Dean Marie Hardin says. “The thing about Gary that’s so impressive is the way he manages to provide the kind of support that each individual student that meets with him needs. At the same time, he manages to think about the bigger picture and what needs to be done in terms of the larger direction of the college. On top of that he is a trusted resource at the University level in bigger discussions. “Another thing I like about Gary — he will speak up when he sees something he thinks is not right. He’s not afraid to tell me what he thinks I need to hear, and a lot of people are not like that. That’s a great quality. He pairs that honesty with a loyalty that is very clear, and that’s what makes it work.”
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2020-21 ANNUAL REPORT
