CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Cleveland Browns received the inaugural John B. Wooten Award from the Fritz Pollard Alliance for “for commitment to workplace diversity, equity and inclusion.”
Browns executive vice president and partner JW Johnson accepted the award on behalf of the organization at the 18th Annual Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. Salute to Excellence Awards held Thursday afternoon in Los Angeles.
The recognition comes in the wake of enhanced scrutiny about hiring practices for executive and head coaching positions across the NFL and Brian Flores’ lawsuit alleging discrimination against the Dolphins, Broncos and Giants.
“It is a tremendous honor for the Browns to be the inaugural recipient of the John B. Wooten Award,” Browns executive vice president of football operations and general manager Andrew Berry said. “Diversity, equity and inclusion are priorities for us. We are deliberate in hiring and developing people who come from different backgrounds and have different perspectives. We believe success in the NFL comes from good people and good people come from all walks of life. We appreciate the recognition and look forward to continuing the work.”
Berry is one of seven minority general managers in the NFL.
Upon being hired in 2020, Berry filled two top front office positions with minorities – vice president of player personnel Glenn Cook and vice president of football operations Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, who was hired January 26 by the Vikings as their general manager.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski has filled his coaching staff with a diverse group of people including defensive coordinator Joe Woods and chief of staff Callie Brownson, who became the first woman to coach a position group in a regular-season game when she filled in for tight ends coach Drew Petzing in Week 12 of the 2020 season.
Ashton Grant just completed his with the team as part of the Bill Willis Coaching Fellowship, which the Browns created for a rising minority coach with a focus on the offensive side of the ball.
On the business side of the organization, the Browns have hosted four fellows over the last year as part of the Haslam Sports Group Diversity and Opportunity Fellowship Program. Each fellow is in the process of completing four broad rotations located in either Cleveland or Columbus and will spend 12 weeks working and learning within the administration, marketing, operations and sales departments.
The Haslams were previously recognized by the Fritz Pollard Alliance for promoting diversity in NFL front offices in 2014 with the Paul "Tank" Younger Award.
