The Office of Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Development invites you to attend the upcoming sessions hosted by the Division of Institutional Equity to create the framework for inclusive excellence at UMBC. Graduate students and postdocs are an important part of our campus community, and we want to ensure your experiences and perspectives are considered as we shape institutional change. For more information, see Tanyka Barber's original message below.
Best,
Yarazeth
Help Shape UMBC’s Inclusive Excellence Framework
Dear UMBC Community,
Inclusive excellence is at the heart of UMBC’s identity. We are strengthening this commitment by introducing a framework that helps form a shared definition to guide our work.
The Division of Institutional Equity team has developed a draft framework for inclusive excellence, building on ideas shared by our campus community through the series UMBC Talks in 2024 and 2025. The framework is intended to articulate our shared commitments, communicate our values, guide action, inspire collaboration, and support the development and implementation of UMBC’s next strategic plan.
This spring, we are inviting the entire campus community to participate in dialogue sessions to help continue to shape the framework. These conversations are an opportunity to share your experiences, reflect on your values, and provide feedback to strengthen this work.
UMBC Talks dialogues are 90-minute, facilitated conversations led by Ciara Christian, M.A. ’18, Ph.D. ’22, director of the Center for Social Justice Dialogue, and David Hoffman, Ph.D. ’13, director of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life.
The following UMBC Talks dialogue sessions are currently scheduled:
-
Friday, April 24, 10 a.m. – noon, UC 312 - Focused on graduate student experiences, but open to all. Participants will have opportunities to connect with others who share similar UMBC affiliations. RSVP here.
-
Friday, April 24, 2 – 4 p.m., UC 312 - Focused on undergraduate student experiences but open to all. Participants will have opportunities to connect with others who share similar UMBC affiliations. RSVP here.
-
Tuesday, April 28, 3 – 5 p.m., Virtual - Open to all. Conversations will take place in mixed groups. RSVP here.
Each session will follow the same format, so you can choose the time that works best for you. We encourage you to participate and share your perspective as we shape this important work together.
Sincerely,
Tanyka M. Barber
Vice President for Institutional Equity and Chief Diversity Officer
Photo by Hussein Abdullah on Unsplash