In the College of Arts & Sciences, we value and honor diverse experiences and perspectives in our teaching and research and strive to create welcoming and equitable learning environments, and promote access, opportunity and justice for all.

The College’s Vision & Action Plan

The College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) commits to co-creating an environment where faculty, staff, and students can, as a community, achieve new dimensions of positive change. With this in mind, CAS’s leadership aims to support dialogue, reciprocal partnerships, and care in our classrooms, in our on-campus and off-campus communities, and ultimately our lives. Our EJI (Equity, Justice, and Inclusion) vision and action plan is the product of community input, and is intended to support an environment where communities that have been historically excluded in higher education are treated with dignity and respect. This vision also undergirds our shared pursuit of a more equitable and just society; a society that is intimately tied to our work as faculty and staff.

University-wide Efforts

The College works in collaboration with greater UW initiatives to support aspirations to become a truly inclusive and equitable environment for learning, research, service, and outreach. The UW’s Race & Equity Initiative, launched in 2015, challenges all — students, faculty, staff and university leadership — to confront racism, take personal responsibility for addressing our own biases, and improve our university culture. The Diversity Blueprint articulates 6 overarching goals for creating a more equitable university, and the new DEIB training provides professional development for faculty and staff with the purpose of eliminating structural racism and promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.

In 2019, the UW commissioned its largest-ever climate survey across all three campuses to examine faculty, staff and student experiences and their feelings of belonging as part of  the community. Feedback was gathered from more than 18,000 respondents and the information will help create more equitable living, learning and working environments, as well as shape the University’s work to prevent and respond to sexual assault and misconduct.

Stories and Opportunities

Learn more about current events, initiatives and people supporting diversity, equity, inclusion & access work in the College and beyond.

Tiana Cole + Brad Blackburn III seated behind a microphone.

Mentorship for Black Professionals, Earbuds Not Included

Identity Unboxed, a podcast created by alums Tiana Cole and Brad Blackburn III, explores the experiences of Black professionals in the Seattle area.

Headshot of Tré Cotten

For Dialect Coach, Every Voice is Unique

As a dialect coach, Tré Cotten (MFA, 2017, Acting) has gained national attention for his ability to help actors bring authenticity to their characters. 

Purple sky over Mount Rainier during sunrise or sunset

College Launches Equity, Justice & Inclusion Fund

With the creation of a new Equity, Justice & Inclusion fund, the College is putting resources behind its values. Under the leadership of Associate Dean Maya Smith, this new fund will foster faculty mentorship, curricular innovations, and more—all toward a vision of greater access and equity.

Associate Dean for Equity, Justice, and Inclusion

Maya Smith
portrait of Maya Smith