May 22, 2025
UW announces new welcome center to be named in honor of President Ana Mari Cauce
A conceptual drawing of the UW’s new Ana Mari Cauce Welcome Center to be built near the Burke Museum.Stephanie Bower/University of Washington
The University of Washington today announced that a planned welcome center on the Seattle campus will be named in honor of President Ana Mari Cauce, who will step down this summer after 10 years in the position and return to the faculty.
The 30,000-square-foot Ana Mari Cauce Welcome Center will serve as a gateway for prospective and current students and families, alumni, visitors, and the public to learn about the University’s mission and impact. The building, to be located next to the Burke Museum, will be a starting place and gathering space for the thousands of people who visit the UW each year, for the campus community to hold public events and lectures, and serve as a bridge to the University District, the city of Seattle and the entire state of Washington.
“President Cauce has a long history of welcoming students, faculty and the community to the University of Washington. In naming the Welcome Center in her honor, we continue her spirit of uplifting the public mission of the UW,” said UW Board of Regents Chair Blaine Tamaki. “We also are thanking President Cauce for the enormous impact she has had on the entire University.”
UW President Ana Mari CauceDennis Wise/University of Washington
For nearly 40 years, Cauce has been a respected UW faculty member and leader. From her arrival in 1986 as an assistant professor of psychology, to the last decade serving as the UW’s 33rd president, she has put her talent and passion to work creating access to excellence for Washington’s students and advancing discovery and innovation with a global public impact. As president, Cauce championed the creation of the Welcome Center, and in naming the building for her, the UW will connect her name with her legacy.
“This Welcome Center means so much to me. When I first came to the UW nearly 40 years ago, I was welcomed into this generous community with open arms. This center will carry that message to everyone — that we are the University for Washington, for the nation, and for the world,” Cauce said.
“It is as simple as it is profound,” she continued. “Whoever you are and wherever you are from — the UW welcomes you. I am deeply honored to be a part of that ongoing story.”
The Ana Mari Cauce Welcome Center will serve as a centralized starting point for information, campus tours and much more. More than 73,000 students applied to undergraduate programs at UW’s Seattle campus in 2025 and thousands of prospective students and their families visit campus each year. The building also will be a home base for the UW’s 600,000 living alumni, providing a gathering space and launching point for community events, public lectures, and more.
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Inside the Welcome Center, interactive exhibits will tell the story of the UW’s impact on the Puget Sound region, the state of Washington and the world. Drawing from all three campuses and UW Medicine clinics and hospitals, it will share the UW’s history, the school’s values and the UW’s economic, cultural and societal contributions to the region, across the nation and around the world. New auditorium and collaborative event spaces will host new student orientations, alumni events, town halls, author readings, career networking and more.
Construction of the $61 million project will be primarily funded by philanthropic support, and $35 million already has been raised.
“Over her long career at the UW, I’ve seen Ana Mari work tirelessly to build bridges, to share credit and elevate everyone around her, while rallying a global community to believe in the University’s collective purpose,” said Lisa Simonyi, vice chair of the UW Foundation Board, who has been a key volunteer in the Welcome Center effort. “She’s done her work ethically and with humility. Charles and I are so privileged to know Ana Mari, count her as a friend and participate in this fitting tribute.”
Lease Crutcher Lewis has been selected as general contractor and architect selection is underway. Construction is expected to begin in late 2026 and be completed in 2028.
For more information, contact Victor Balta at balta@uw.edu or 206-543-2580.
Tag(s): Ana Mari Cauce