FBI Director Christopher Wray with Mehmet Ulupinar
FBI Director Christopher Wray presented Mehmet Ulupinar with the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award (DCLA) for his service to the citizens of Little Rock through his work as president of the board for the Arkansas Culture and Dialog Center (ACDC). The award was presented during a ceremony held at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. in April.
Ulupinar is an international admission counselor in the Center for Global Learning and Engagement. He has been with UCA since 2015. ACDC is a nonprofit organization that aims to promote the understanding of diverse cultures through the unique services it offers to the community.
The FBI established the DCLA in 1990 to publicly acknowledge the achievements of those working to make a difference in their communities through the promotion of education and the prevention of crime and violence. Each year, one person or organization from each of the FBI’s 56 field offices is chosen to receive this prestigious award.
“Our success as both a law enforcement and an intelligence agency hinges on our ability to foster and maintain genuine partnerships with people in all communities,” said Wray. “People like this year’s Leadership Award recipients not only identify what others need, but they are willing to roll up their sleeves and provide services. They are building bridges and relationships while putting in the work to have hard conversations and find common purpose. They do it out of kindness and compassion with a sincere belief that justice – in its many forms – requires all of us to do the right thing in the right way.”
Ulupinar works to foster relationships between diverse communities and law enforcement in Arkansas by providing easily accessible educational, social,and cultural services at ACDC. Dr. Ulupinar assists the FBI in pushing key safety concerns to minority youth and adults throughout central Arkansas through trainings and networking events with the goal of creating a safer and more connected community.