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  • OMA&D Remembers Eddie Ray Walker

    January 26, 2024

    Eddie Walker

      Eddie Ray Walker passed away on Monday, December 4, 2023. As a lifelong advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, especially in relation to Black-centered art and Black artists, Walker has left an indelible mark on the University of Washington. His actions as a student and throughout his life have helped shape the experience of thousands of OMA&D students over…

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  • Suquamish Tribe Chairman Leonard Forsman to Receive Charles E. Odegaard Award

    January 9, 2024

    The University of Washington Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity has announced Suquamish Tribe Chairman and UW Regent, the Honorable Leonard Forsman ’87, as the next recipient of the Charles E. Odegaard Award. As a long-time advocate for Native rights and civil rights, and the first American Indian appointed to the University of Washington Board of Regents, Forsman will receive…

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  • Mariama Suwaneh to Receive the Inaugural Spark Award

    January 9, 2024

    The University of Washington Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity has announced Mariama Suwaneh, ’17, as the inaugural recipient of the OMA&D Spark Award. As an actively engaged student at the UW and an avid community builder since graduation, Suwaneh embodies the diversity, equity and inclusion leadership that inspires young changemakers and exemplifies the spirit of the Charles E. Odegaard award.…

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  • Taking Back the Dinner: A Celebration of Native Cultures

    December 15, 2023

    Tuesday, November 21, 2023 was the annual Taking Back the Dinner – a celebration of Native cultures, an opportunity to raise awareness about issues affecting the Native community, and an event to honor rich Native customs and traditions. Organized by First Nations @UW, an undergraduate intertribal registered student organization, the event centered on a deep commitment to community education and…

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  • Remembering the Legacy of E.J. Brisker

    November 15, 2023

    Emanual J. (EJ) Brisker Jr., ’70, passed away on September 21, 2023, at the age of 80. The Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity and the University of Washington owe Brisker a debt of gratitude for his activism as a student, and beyond, that led to the establishment of OMA&D and laid the foundation for many of our access programs…

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  • 2023 Samuel E. Kelly Distinguished Faculty Lecture Recap

    November 6, 2023

    On Tuesday, October 17, 2023, OMA&D held its annual Samuel E. Kelly Distinguished Faculty Lecture. This year, the lecture featured Dr. Joanne Woiak, Associate Teaching Professor for the Disability Studies Program at the University of Washington. Her lecture “Engaging Disability, Empowering History: Ethics and Politics of Disability History” highlighted the exclusion and erasure of disabilities from history and the impact…

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  • The Raap Approach

    October 25, 2023

    Champions students at a pumpkin patch in October 2023.

    How Melissa Raap’s first-generation college student experience shapes her work today.   Melissa Raap, MSW (’11) manages the University of Washington’s Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity Champions program. Champions serves students on the UW Seattle campus who are alumni of foster care or unaccompanied homeless youth by helping them navigate the challenging bureaucracies that come with being a student.…

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  • OMA&D Congratulates Alumna Evangelina Galvan Shreeve

    September 18, 2023

    EVANGELINA GALVAN SHREEVE - Chief Diversity Officer and Director of STEM Education, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

    The US Department of Energy announced earlier this month that Evangelina Galvan Shreeve (’89, ’96)  will receive a 2023 Clean Energy Education & Empowerment Award from the Clean Energy & Empowerment (C3E) during the C3E Annual Symposium, Sept. 27-28. C3E a public-private sector collaboration focused on advancing women in the energy sector, led by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)…

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  • Thank you! 2023 Celebration Event Recap

    June 6, 2023

    With help from OMA&D supporters, we raised over $370,000 for OMA&D and EOP scholarships! On Wednesday, May 17, 2023, the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity and the Friends of the Educational Opportunity Program Board of Trustees hosted 550 people in the University of Washington Husky Union Ballroom for a wonderful evening of music, dancing, dining and celebrating together in…

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  • OMA&D Remembers Trailblazing Artist Alfredo Arreguin

    May 2, 2023

    The late celebrated artist Alfredo Arreguin smiling in front of one of his pieces of art

    Alfredo Arreguin ‘67, ’69, passed on April 24, 2023, at the age of 88. Many articles have been written about Arreguin and his journey from his home country of Mexico to the University of Washington, his early life struggles, his draft service into the Korean war, and his world-renowned success as an artist. A biographical essay by Sheila Farr from…

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