BIPOC alliance aims to bring together graduate students of color

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Doctoral student Phillandra Smith came to Syracuse University to pursue her Ph.D. in special education in the midst of a well-traveled and broad academic career. She completed her undergraduate studies at The University of the West Indies in Jamaica, received her master’s degree from Barry University in Florida and had even taught in Japan as an English teacher.

Yet when she arrived at SU, her first semester felt different — it was the first time she felt out of place in an academic setting.

“Coming to SU almost felt as if I was walking into someone’s private space, like I should excuse myself and apologize for my presence,” Smith recalled. “We talk about imposter syndrome a whole lot, and that can really be magnified when you walk into a space and you don’t see people who look like you.”

Peter Vanable, the dean of the Graduate School, founded the Graduate Student BIPOC Alliance for Excellence (GSBA), an initiative which members said seeks to bring together students of color across various different graduate programs at SU. Smith leads the group, Vanable said.

The committee consists of seven graduate students, including Smith, who are under the mentorship of Vanable.

Smith said that Vanable was very enthusiastic about the initiative and that she has been very pleased with his involvement so far.

The alliance has hosted two events this semester: a welcome mixer and panel discussion, as well as a virtual panel titled “Navigating Mentorship as a BIPOC Graduate Student.” 

SU’s Graduate Student Organization has been promoting events hosted by the alliance. Brittnee Johnson, the vice president of external affairs for the Graduate Student Organization, said she immediately jumped at the opportunity to get involved in the alliance.

Johnson, a candidate for a masters degree in public administration, said her involvement in both groups gives her the advantage of making sure the entire graduate student body is aware of the alliance. 

“I’m very thankful to the graduate school for taking this so seriously. Dean Vanable, he comes to every single meeting,” Johnson said. “That’s not something you always see with the dean of the graduate school.”

For Vanable and the other committee members, the response to both events was overwhelming as well as encouraging.

“It’s the obvious thing we weren’t doing that we needed to do (before GSBA was formed),” Vanable said. “This is one part of a bigger picture, obviously. This alone is not going to change everything — it’s really up to individual programs as well to do their part.”

Alliance members said they are excited for the future of the alliance and what it will mean for the BIPOC graduate community at SU.

Nandini Jhawar, who is involved with the Psychology Doctoral Students’ Committee for Diversity and Inclusion, joined the advisory group at the beginning of the semester.

“It was nice to see that at (the mixer), there weren’t just first and second year students that were new to the campus, but also fifth and sixth year students that wanted to connect. I think that spoke to the need for more connections between BIPOC students,” Jhawar said. “You would think that by then, you would’ve established a support system and might not see the need to come to these kinds of events, but people were still showing up.”

Still, Smith said the role comes with a great deal of pressure to respond to graduate students’ needs. She said the amount of students that reached out to her at the events was overwhelming because she felt responsible to meet their needs. 

“It’s like someone’s asking you for something and you must continue to respond to it,” she said. “You want to do right by people, you want to get it right.”