Be Yourself association

In 2015, Audencia became the first higher education institution in the Pays de la Loire to sign the LGBT charter drawn up by the Autre Cercle association. To implement the principles in this charter, a MOGAI association was created which enabled Audencia to carry out concrete actions aimed at promoting the inclusion of LGBTQ+ groups. Armed with this experience and the realisation that homophobia and sexism are often inextricably entwined, the MOGAI association became the Be Yourself association in 2019 to fight against gender stereotypes in a broader context. This large-scale initiative is being implemented in the courses given to students, in academic research, in the actions taken with our partner companies and in the school’s exemplary approach. The association is made up of both staff members (e.g. faculty members and administrative staff) and students and aims to be a place for exchanging ideas. It aims to provide the opportunity to bring up any potential problems which may be encountered as well as concrete and educational actions which can be taken. The goal is to make our campus an inclusive space that lives up to our commitments.

FEDEEH partnership

With the belief that diversity is a strength and having been involved in this field for more than 10 years, Audencia has decided to extend its disability policy, which previously was aimed at its teams, to include students. Faced with the fact that the employability of people with disabilities is often limited due to their lack of qualifications, Audencia’s role in this seemed clear. It should become a key player in this societal issue in its local area and facilitate further academic studies among young people with disabilities. To embark on this initiative, Audencia signed a partnership with a key national player in this field: the Student Federation for Education and Employment Dynamics with Handicap (Fédération Étudiante pour une Dynamique Études et Emploi avec un Handicap – FEDEEH). The goal is to set up joint tutoring programmes between our students and local young people with disabilities from “standard” classes (Flagship Programme) and Ulys classes (Phratry Programme).

As a local institution and the only partner of FEDEEH in the Pays de la Loire, Audencia is committed to reaching out to secondary schools in the region in order to work together towards a common goal: supporting young people with disabilities to promote their inclusion in society and the workplace.