Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr. will join UNMC leaders to celebrate UNMC’s community engagement efforts at 8 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 23.
The event will be held at the Wigton Heritage Center Atrium. UNMC Interim Chancellor H. Dele Davies, MD, also will speak at the event.
“We are delighted to welcome Mayor Ewing to UNMC,” Dr. Davies said. “Our partnership with the City of Omaha is a powerful example of what community engagement looks like in action, and we are honored to have him on campus for this event recognizing that partnership.”
The mayor will pronounce Feb. 23 “UNMC Community Engagement Day,” recognizing UNMC’s efforts to raise the health of all individuals and communities across Nebraska.
The event also will recognize UNMC for being awarded the 2026 Carnegie Community Engagement Classification, one of the highest national honors recognizing an institution’s commitment to community engagement. UNMC, which first received the classification in 2015, is one of only 279 institutions across the county that currently hold it.
Dr. Davies congratulated Heidi Keeler, PhD, and her Office of Community Engagement team on the Carnegie Classification, which UNMC is receiving for the second time. 2026 also is the 10th year since the inception of the UNMC Office of Community Engagement, which Dr. Davies established.
“This work didn’t happen by chance,” said Dr. Davies. “It takes a tremendous amount of commitment and dedication to our communities. I commend Dr. Keeler and her team for being the driving force behind our unified community engagement efforts.”
Dr. Keeler said: “We are excited to share this celebration with our mayor, who is a longstanding advocate for empowering community partnerships and involvement. We hope this event marks the beginning of another 10 years of working together with our community members towards better health for all.”
When it first received the classification in 2015, UNMC was one of only four academic medical centers to do so. It remains one of only seven.