Program – Institute for Recruitment of Teachers

What does it mean to advise as a form of justice?

Ulises Garcia Jr., IRT ’21

This was the first question I was asked during my Statement of Purpose (SOP) Advisor interview. It is no secret that we are (and have been) living in trying times. Consequently, I believe the most appropriate way to advise as a form of justice is to acknowledge and appease to the humanity of others. Subsequently, I aimed to meet my advisees where they were at, practiced radical honesty, and challenged them to confidently speak to their strengths. I pulled lessons from my undergraduate journey, my own experience as an IRT advisee, and my graduate and professional learnings.

I remember reaching out to a mentor in undergrad for resume support and he said something that has stuck with me to this day. Before addressing any of his notes he said, “Ulises, I want you to know that I think writing is vulnerable and, therefore, you sharing your writing with me is honorable and I will treat it as such.” I was floored. I don’t know that I had experienced someone be so forward with their care about my writing before but I greatly appreciated that transparency. Writing is a reflection of thought processes put onto paper and asking for feedback is opening oneself up to being critiqued. Sharing drafts of SOP’s for 8 weeks is an act of vulnerability—it requires trust and it was imperative that I relayed that message to my advisees during our first introductory group meeting.

The 2026 IRT Summer Workshop

Rooted in community. Grounded in our ways of knowing. Moving forward together.

Last summer, IRT Scholars came together not to be shaped by the academy, but to understand it, question it, and imagine what it could look like in their hands. They arrived carrying their own histories, their languages, and their ways of knowing. They read Anzaldúa and Crenshaw, Fanon and Spivak, not as distant authorities but as people who had wrestled with the same questions they were asking. They wrote. They pushed each other. They showed up for one another. And they left as a community. This summer, we will continue that work.

Knowledge That Belongs to Us

The 2026 IRT Summer Workshop starts from a simple and honest place: the knowledge scholars bring into the room already matters. Over four weeks of virtual, live, co-created programming, scholars will have space to develop their intellectual identities on their own terms while also building the skills to navigate academic spaces that were not originally designed with them in mind.

IRT Alumni Panels 2026 – 2027

Give Back and Get Involved as a Panelist

The IRT is planning for its next cohort, and one of the ways that IRT Alumni can continue to give back with their time and expertise is through the Alumni Panel Series. Alumni share their knowledge of the graduate school process, the hidden curriculum of graduate school, and offer encouragement and support to aspiring IRT Scholars during this series.

Interested in Joining the Next IRT Cohort?

The IRT application is now open for scholars wishing to begin a graduate program in the fall of 2027.

The application will close on March 1, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. EST – please note that no extensions will be granted.

A Note of Gratitude to Our SOP Advisors

As our IRT Cohort submits their final applications and awaits responses from graduate programs, please join me in pausing and celebrating this past year’s Statement of Purpose Advisor’s (SOPA’s), the incredible mentors who walked alongside our aspiring scholars through this transformative journey.

Your impact shows up in every reflection since our first advising meetings. Scholars recognized that their research holds value even while in progress, that their community work carries equal weight to institutional opportunities, and that their varied experiences aren’t fragmented but intentional. You helped them honor strengths they’d overlooked and reclaim narratives about experiences they’d been taught to diminish.