Many organizations utilize affinity groups to support members of the community, to increase sense of belonging for members of historically marginalized groups, and to improve overall inclusivity. And yet, many of us find ourselves facilitating these groups simply because we are one of the few in the community who identify as members of these groups or because we hold a desire to support DEI efforts. Facilitating identity affirming and protective spaces is simply not something we have been trained to do, and so many of us are hungry for this learning. This full day session accomplishes several goals:

- Learn a four-pillar framework for facilitating affinity groups that can leverage these spaces and build strong communities.

- Discover factors that lead to greater (or less) success and examine our current programs for effectiveness.

- Connect with other affinity leaders from other schools, within and across identity groups, to develop group-specific topics, resources, and strategies.