The Graduate School at Princeton University has made significant progress in creating an inclusive community as well as diversifying its population of scholars. We are deeply committed to building an inclusive and equitable community where every graduate student feels welcome and can thrive academically, socially, and professionally. With that in mind, and as part of the Access, Diversity, and Inclusion team’s overall strategic goals, we are hosting our sophomore diversity conference, The Inclusive Academy (IA) Symposium. 

The IA Symposium is an in-person diversity conference held on Thursday, May 18^th focused on supporting graduate students and post-doctoral scholars from underrepresented backgrounds, on an array of topics related to success in the academy and on the job market. The symposium is focused on bringing graduate students and post-doctoral scholars from underrepresented backgrounds together while also providing a platform to discuss critical topics for thriving and success through a holistic and intersectional lens. We will host panels, speakers, and workshops that enhance their knowledge and understanding of various topics in addition to strengthening their leadership, public speaking, networking ability, and storytelling skills.

The Best of Access, Diversity, and Inclusion Awards, The BADI Awards

Additionally, the symposium will culminate in the first of its kind award dinner, The Best of Access, Diversity, and Inclusion Awards, also known as the BADI awards. The BADI awards will honor and celebrate faculty, staff, post-docs, and graduate students who have made significant impacts in the Princeton graduate student community around diversity and inclusion.  We are proud to shine a much-deserved light on the efforts of our exemplary graduate students as well as those dedicated to uplifting them.

The theme of this year’s conference is 'Cultivating Excellence Through Culture and Connection’. To cultivate means to develop and grow--a process frequently denied underrepresented students.  Excellence is framed as something achieved apart from one's culture and as a singular accomplishment, rather than as a product of communal connections.  Too often, the cultivated excellence, contributions, service, and overall  awesomeness of folks from underrepresented backgrounds who center culture and connection are overlooked, discouraged, and kept secret. The Inclusive Academy (IA) Symposium and the BADI Awards are designed to cultivate, amplify, and celebrate the culture, connections, and contributions of this community.