IDSA’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) is honored to announce the leaders of IDSA's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council (DEIC) for its first term:

ClayVon Lowe, IDSA – Co-Chair
Raja Schaar, IDSA – Co-Chair
Ayana Patterson, IDSA – Leader
Tracy Llewellyn, IDSA – Leader
Amanda Huynh, IDSA – Leader
Brian Skeet, IDSA – Leader
Ana Mengote Baluca, IDSA – Leader
Betsy Barnhart, IDSA – Leader
Anson Cheung, IDSA – Leader

Guided by the leadership team and supported by the larger, general Council, the DEIC will center on overdue improvements and long-term solutions within IDSA, industrial design education, and the industrial design industry in respect to many types of diversity—including, but not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender, ability, and sexual orientation.     

The DEIC aims to:

• Significantly increase diversity and minority representation in IDSA's core programming, events, leadership teams, membership, publications, partnerships, awards, and scholarships
• Develop new pathways and partnerships that will extend IDSA’s ability to support minority and low-income communities, and to increase access to industrial design education and professional opportunities
• Be a catalyst in transforming the industrial design industry so that it better reflects our diverse country and world, and to dismantle the structural racism and inequities that permeate design and our communities

The DEIC also is set to partner with the repositioned Design Foundation on educational initiatives moving forward. 

If you would like to help, please email DEIC@idsa.org.

The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) stands with our international members, students, and community pushing back against ICE’s new policy.

On July 6, 2020, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced a modification to the current Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP). In short, the new policy would force international students currently enrolled at American colleges and universities offering exclusively online courses in the fall of 2020 to either transfer to a school offering in-person classes or depart the country.

The policy from ICE is in direct conflict to Article V of IDSA's Code of Ethics, which reads in part: "We will be responsible to design education by holding as one of our fundamental concerns the education of design students; by advocating implementation of sufficiently inclusive curricula and requiring satisfactory proficiency to enable students to enter the profession with adequate knowledge and skills..."

Actions you can take right now to protect international students:

• Sign and share petitions like these: "Allow International Students to Finish Their Degrees" and "Allow F-1 and M-1 students to remain in the U.S. with online-only classes."
• Call and email your state representatives and alma maters to express your stance. Find your state representatives here and check this list of colleges' plans of reopening in the fall. Danielle Chen, IDSA has created this email template for writing to your university in support of international students.
• Read and listen to international students' stories. Priyankaa Krishnan, IDSA recently spoke to CNN and NBC about the profound effect the announced policy change has had on her life and the lives of other international students in the U.S.

Thank you to Priyankaa, Danielle, Women in Industrial Design Chicago, IDSA-Northern Lakes, and the student IDSA chapter at the University of Houston for sharing these links and more.

IDSA will continue to share resources as needed, reach out to educators, and speak up for the international student community.