Wagner Students of African Descent Alliance (SADA)

http://www.nyu.edu/clubs/sada/

Mission Statement

The Students of African Descent Alliance at the NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service aims to enhance the educational and social experience of Wagner students of African descent by providing support networks, forums that build community and exchanging resources.  As professional public servants, we also initiate dialogues, educational forums, and service endeavors related to communities of African descent in order to positively impact our community, inform the broader community, and partner with others to make change. 

Goals

Of the students who obtain master’s degrees in the United States, only approximately 8% are black, while 83% are white. [1]   At the Wagner School, only 10% of the students are black, translating to approximately 95 students out of 950.  As civic leaders and public servants, we all recognize that severe educational inequalities between races exist.  We also recognize that as a marginalized group in society, black students face stereotypes, (both unconscious and overt) discrimination, and other obstacles brought about by cultural differences.  At Wagner, the scene is no different. 

The Students of African Descent Alliance exists to assist black students at Wagner achieve success by providing intellectual, emotional and cultural support.  Our goals include: retention, high academic achievement, sense of community, and networking opportunities for our members.  Through our successes, we also aim to recruit additional talented black students to the Wagner School. 

Membership

The SADA membership consists of all Wagner students of African, African-American, and Caribbean descent (approximately 95), as well as alumni, and all others who are interested in learning about and participating in issues and events of importance to us (these include other black NYU graduate students, as well as students of other races).  We maintain a listserve: sada@forums.nyu.edu which is open for all to join, to communicate with our members. 

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1. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Digest of Education Statistics, 2000 at http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=72.

Please see the Wagner Calendar or the SADA website more information on how to get involved.