Bentley to host two-day Pride summit for LGBTQ+ professionals

Bentley University will host its first-ever Pride & Purpose Summit, a two-day learning event for LGBTQ+ professionals and allies across business and higher education.

The summit will be held on Bentley University’s campus Thursday, June 12, and Friday, June 13. It will feature keynote sessions with inclusive thought leaders, interactive workshops with expert facilitators, grassroots roundtable discussions and networking opportunities across sectors.

According to organizers, the summit will give participants practical, evidence-based tools to navigate today’s workplace dynamics and help them develop resilient leadership strategies to support well-being, engage in immersive, community-building experiences and elevate their voices and ignite the shared capacity to lead change. 

Mateo Cruz, faculty director for the summit, said organizers created the event as a response to attacks on the LGBTQ+ community in the past decade. 

Organizers pointed to statistics showing that despite the implementation of federal protections against workplace discrimination, 72% of LGBTQ+ employees report negative experiences at work based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity. As a result, 57% of LGBTQ+ employees hide their orientation at work, which stifles creativity and authenticity and negatively impacts emotional health and well-being. At the same time, research shows LGBTQ+ employees add valuable contributions to the modern workplace, including possessing high levels of social perceptiveness, resilience and the courage to lead change. 

Registration to the Pride & Purpose Summit costs $200 per person and includes full access to the summit, breakfast, lunch, snacks and beverages. Scholarships to the summit are available. Visit https://www.bentley.edu/centers/executive-education/pride-purpose for more information.