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Women Investigating Race, Ethnicity, and Difference (WIRED) is an organization dedicated to providing participants professional advice, intellectual stimuli and support in balancing demands at home and work. Members of the group are assistant professors, mostly women of color, who were brought together by their overlapping inter-/multidisciplinary research agendas that focus on how social constructions of race, ethnicity and culture shape subjectives, practices and the material world surrounding us.

Ralina Joseph

Janine Jones

Habiba Ibrahim

Ralina Joseph (Communication), Janine Jones (Educational Psychology) and Habiba Ibrahim (English), all assistant professors at the University of Washington, are the co-founders of WIRED. In the spring of 2006, while discussing an idea for a “writing group” with a prospective candidate for a faculty position on campus, the question of resources for faculty of color in terms of mentorship, collaboration and general support was raised. This question led to new ideas about what women of color in academia need to feel supported and be successful in their respective positions. WIRED is the result of this dialogue.

WIRED's primary goal is to support its participants as they navigate through the tenure process, providing professional and personal guidance. Monthly meetings provide a safe, private and flexible environment to discuss topics relating to challenges in teaching, constructive criticism to research, ways to sustain links to prospective communities and their families. The women of WIRED focus their research on race, ethnicity and culture with the goal of sharing knowledge across disciplines.