For Immediate Release

Media Contact:
Erica Banks, Senior Director of Communications
email: [email protected]
phone: 678.417.8685

Johns Creek, Ga., April  27, 2022 The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) announced today that its President and CEO Dawn Morton-Rias Ed.D, PA-C has signed onto the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion™, the largest CEO-driven business commitment to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

This commitment is driven by a realization that addressing diversity and inclusion is not a competitive issue, but a societal issue that CEOs can play a critical role in addressing. As a unique collaborative group of over 2,000 CEOs of the world’s leading companies, signees to the pledge agree to take action to cultivate workplaces where different points of view are welcomed and employees feel encouraged to discuss tough issues at work.

“Diversity and inclusion are difficult issues to navigate, but if we avoid constructive conversation about our differences, communication deteriorates and productivity suffers,” said Morton-Rias. “It is my personal goal to continue to cultivate NCCPA’s work environment such that employees can openly address challenges, present opportunities, and share perspectives.”

NCCPA signed on to the coalition to leverage individual voices to collectively advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and enhance employee engagement. This commitment is another step in a series of actions by NCCPA to catalyze further conversation and action around the importance of diversity and inclusion in PA education, the PA profession and in all aspects of patient care.

September 8-9 the organization will host the Represent! Summit, the first of its kind, in-person gathering of PAs, PA educators, PA leaders, PA students, physicians and other relevant stakeholders on the importance of increasing racial diversity, equity and inclusion in the PA profession. The event was created to facilitate a discussion and actionable steps to be taken to address the decreasing diversity of the PA profession amid an increasingly diverse patient population, and will take place at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, Georgia.

To read more about Represent!, please visit https://www.nccpa.net/represent-summit.

To read more about the commitment, visit the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion™ unified hub, CEOAction.com.

About the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants

The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) is the only certifying organization for the more than 148,560 Certified PAs* in the United States and abroad. The PA-C credential is awarded by NCCPA to PAs who fulfill certification, certification maintenance and recertification requirements. NCCPA also administers the Certificate of Added Qualifications (CAQ) program for experienced, Certified PAs practicing in seven specialties. For more information, visit http://www.nccpa.net.