Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging, & Equity

Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging, & Equity

At NYU Wagner, we know how important issues of inclusion, diversity, belonging, and equity are to everything that we do. It's a collective work in progress. By committing to it, we believe we can build better solutions to our toughest social challenges.

NYU Wagner is committed to promoting the values of inclusion, diversity, belonging, and equity (IDBE) in public service and to bringing an IDBE lens to the various domains that shape our institutional culture and help advance our mission. We know that markers of difference shape the way we see the world, the way resources are distributed, the way policies are made, the way boundaries are drawn, and the way institutions are managed.

We have a deep and long-standing commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion. As a school of public service, we embody these values through four domains:

Institutional practice
The educational experience
A diverse community
Wagner in the world

View NYU Wagner's IDBE Mission & Plan
Explore NYU's Global Inclusion and Diversity Initiatives

IDBE Resources

Javon Robbinson (MPA 2021)

Knowing I am the first in my family to reach this level of education is my greatest source of motivation. I feel proud knowing my experiences at NYU Wagner will create a new cycle of academic success for future generations of my family. My journey to graduate school at an institution like NYU allows me to show my younger brother that with determination and resilience, no dream is out of reach.

Black person's hand holding the American flag.

Racial Inequality in America: What Do We Do Now?

This course explores the spatial aspects of inequality, including racial segregation, concentrated poverty, and government structure. Course materials will investigate the consequences of these inequalities for individuals, communities, and American society as a whole, as well as how these seemingly-intractable problems were created by and continue because of public policy decisions.

Gender & Sexuality in U.S. Policy Formation

This course focuses on the role that criminalization plays in the area of gender and sexuality in the United States by examining topics such abortion and regulation of intimate partner behavior. Practical application on how policy is made will be intertwined throughout the course and we will use case studies to examine why certain policy efforts, such as marriage equality was successful, while the Equal Rights Amendment failed.

Group of people in the workplace looking at a computer screen.

Race, Identity, and Inclusion in Organizations

This course brings together a wide range of thinking and scholarship about race and identity to encourage learning about what race is, why it matters, and racial dynamics in organizations and how best to address them.

NYC 2025 person on a bike in New York City.

NYC 2025: Comprehensive, Inclusive Policy Proposals for New York City

NYU Wagner published 15 thoughtful, forward-thinking proposals laying out a practical path for the next Mayor and City Council to follow to ensure a more inclusive post-pandemic recovery for all. Papers range from mayoral power to healthcare to housing.

Wagner Alumni are Celebrated as Black New York Trailblazers

Two NYU Wagner alumni, Farah Louis (MPA 2018) and Jennifer Jones Austin (EMPA 1996), have been named in City & State’s Power of Diversity: Black 100 which recognizes Black trailblazers in New York.

Andrew Friedman (LAW '98) to lead new Initiative for Community Power and Democratic Engagement at NYU

Initiative for Community Power and Democratic Engagement—a joint venture of NYU Wagner NYU School of Law will be lead by NYU alumnus Andrew Friedman (LAW '98), founder and co-executive director of the Center for Popular Democracy.

INCLUSION, DIVERSITY, BELONGING, & EQUITY ENGAGEMENT

NYU Wagner offers an array of programs, events, and student organizations aligned with inclusion, diversity, belonging, and equity initiatives including:

Association of Latinx Students and Allies in Public Service, a group focused engaging with and advocating for issues at the intersection study and subjects relevant to Latinxs and their Diasporas around the world.
Black Student Association (BSA) which aims to provide various support mechanisms and increase social networks to students at Wagner.
Wagner Diversity Council (WDC), a student organization committed to intentional discourse, practice, and action around diversity and inclusion in all its facets within our institutional, academic, and social community.

How Organizations Can Pursue Racial Equity

Professor Erica Foldy explains how organizations can pursue racial equity. Co-author of the book The Color Bind: Talking (and not Talking) about Race at Work, she is a frequent speaker at conferences and other venues.