About
Mission:
GYA’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access (DEIA) Committee is responsible for efforts to improve financial aid access and student diversity on gap years. As a part of the Gap Year Association, the DEIA Committee serves to promote Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility across the gap year field.
We Accomplish Our Mission Further By:
1) Encouraging GYA members and affiliate programs to be more inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible by providing education, technical expertise, and conversation tools intended to promote diverse collaboration.
2.) Highlighting these programs as fundamentally life-changing experiences meant to support students of all kinds through transitional periods in their lives and deepen their practical, professional, and personal awareness and alter pre-conceived notions of gap year programs being exclusive, expensive, and inaccessible.
3.) Supporting and encourage more diverse leadership and participation across GYA programs to continue to evolve the movement.
Goals:
- Continue to foster a welcoming and collaborative community for current and former gap year students.
- Provide direct feedback for the evolving GYA student engagement strategy.
- Create a streamlined process for connecting educators, consultants, and press with gap year student / alum speakers that represent a variety of backgrounds and gap year experiences.
Email: info@gapyearassociation.org to express interest and gain more information.
Next Meeting:
TBD
Co-Chairs
Carla Y. Emanuele has been an educator for over ten years after graduating from Drew University with a degree in theater. Stage experience cultivated a love for story-telling and a passion for helping students reflect on their own stories no matter where they are in life. She believes opportunities to learn belong to everyone and works to champion projects that produce such opportunities in new and innovative ways. Her specialties include new program development and implementation where she seeks to ensure holistic student experiences are met with accessible programming and quality engagements. She currently served as the chair of the DEIA committee with the GYA and is enjoying working on smaller-scale projects to expand inclusion initiatives in other spaces of education.
You can reach Carla at DEIA@gapyearassociation.org
Claire joined the DEIA committee in 2019 to put her passion for justice and access in experiential education into action. As a queer educator, Claire feels especially called to ensure that LGBTQIA+ students feel supported and able to thrive in a gap year experience. In her current role as the Assistant Director of High Mountain Institute Gap Semesters, Claire wears many hats including; marketing, admissions, financial aid, and field staff. Claire is an alumna of Boston University Film School, Semester at Sea, NOLS, and City Year Denver. Previous to starting her work with HMI Gap, Claire served as a Gap Instructor with ARCC–bringing students to 14 different countries in one year! Outside of her time at work, Claire loves singing karaoke, hanging out with her dog and partner, and discovering new ways to enjoy the outdoors.
Resources from the DEIA Committee
Anti-Racism Books, Podcasts, and Workshops
The above list is a living document, and we welcome you to add to the list by contacting us at DEIA@gapyearassociation.org. We hope that you find valuable learning opportunities and insights in the linked resource.
DEIA Self-Assessment Tool for Programs
The GYA DEIA Committee have created the second version of it’s Self-Study Tool. Organizations are invited to take the optionally anonymous survey for free, and are encouraged to set aside a few hours with staff to discuss the questions and the organization’s smartest plans for improvement. NOTE: Only GYA members are eligible for access to reports for benchmarking.
If you represent a Gap Year Program interested in improving Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion in your organization and participant base, consider hiring a GYA-Vetted DEIA Consultant.
If you’re looking to diversify your staff, use the linked list of portals to find free and paid job boards catered to diverse audiences.
The two resources above are thanks to the hard work of Brynna Rao, former Communications Director at Outward Bound Costa Rica and current member of the GYA Board of Directors and GYA DEIA Committee.
DEIA Self-Assessment Tool for Programs
The GYA DEIA Committee have created the second version of it’s Self-Study Tool. Organizations are invited to take the optionally anonymous survey for free, and are encouraged to set aside a few hours with staff to discuss the questions and the organization’s smartest plans for improvement. NOTE: Only GYA members are eligible for access to reports for benchmarking.
DEIA Consultants & Trainers
If you represent a Gap Year Program interested in improving Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion in your organization and participant base, consider hiring a GYA-Vetted DEIA Consultant.
If you’re looking to diversify your staff, use the linked list of portals to find free and paid job boards catered to diverse audiences.
The two resources above are thanks to the hard work of Brynna Rao, former Communications Director at Outward Bound Costa Rica and current member of the GYA Board of Directors and GYA DEIA Committee.
GYA Deeper Dialogue with Justice in June
Anti-Racism Books, Podcasts, and Workshops
The above list is a living document, and we welcome you to add to the list by contacting us at DEIA@gapyearassociation.org. We hope that you find valuable learning opportunities and insights in the linked resource.
GYA Deeper Dialogue with Justice in June