Yesterday marked a wonderful and special moment in our University’s partnership with the South Seattle community as we opened the UW Othello Commons.
Category: Community
A win for Washington
Yesterday, we had a lot to celebrate in Pullman, including a fantastic win by our Husky Football team. But what really warmed my heart on that cold, wet, snowy day were the ways our state came together.
Giving thanks, and hoping for a bright future
In this season of thanks, throughout our nation, and here in the Pacific Northwest, we live in a landscape and time of contradictions. We are surrounded by the natural beauty of mountains, waters and forests and we are home to a culture of innovation creating prosperity and incredible advances in science, technology, medicine, music and art. We have much to be grateful for.
In the face of tragedy, what can we do?
It is with great sadness that I write to our community to express my deepest condolences to all who have been affected by the truly horrific events of this past week, and especially the shootings at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.
A dose of inspiration from Justice Sotomayor
This weekend, I had the tremendous honor of interviewing Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor who was invited here by the University Book Store and the UW School of Law to talk about her newest book, Turning Pages
Welcoming our new provost, Mark Richards
It’s my pleasure to extend a warm welcome to Dr. Mark Richards, the University of Washington’s new provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and Professor of Earth and Space Sciences. I am delighted to be working with Mark and look forward to his contributions to our community. Mark’s responsibilities are broad and include serving as the University’s chief academic and budget officer in support of teaching, research and service across the UW.
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Prior to joining us, Mark was a professor of Earth and planetary science and special assistant for diversity in the mathematical and physical sciences, having previously served as executive dean of the College of Letters and Science (2006-2014) and dean of Mathematical and Physical Science (2002-2014), all at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a celebrated scholar of geology and will be delivering a public lecture of great general interest — the seismic and meteoric activity that coincided with the extinction of the dinosaurs — on October 30. It will be a wonderful opportunity for our campus to get to know Mark and learn more about his fascinating research — I look forward to seeing you there and at the welcome reception that will follow.
Until then, Mark will be taking time this summer to get to know our campus and community, as well as our beautiful region and state. He’ll be visiting many units and departments to learn about the extraordinary teaching and scholarship that define our academic community, as well as the challenges and opportunities ahead.
Please join me in making Mark — along with his wife, Dr. Sarah Noonberg, and their three children — feel welcome, as we all work together to advance the great public mission of the UW.
Academic student employees ratify contract
Sunday evening, UAW 4121 announced that the proposed 3-year contract with academic student employees had been ratified by a 62 percent to 38 percent margin (1476 to 918). We are heartened by this result because this contract continues the progress we’ve made in recent years in elevating wages and benefits for ASEs, and also means that undergraduates can finish their courses as planned. Academic student employees are critical to our success as a world-class research university, and this new contract represents our commitment to them and to ensuring fairness for all UW students.
We recognize that our region’s sky-rocketing housing costs are placing real financial stresses on our ASEs, along with other members of our community, and we look forward to working together during the legislative session on behalf of funding for higher education and our top priority, which will continue to be better wages for all our employees.
The negotiations were lengthy, spanning 22 sessions, and we want to thank the negotiators from both sides, as well as all those who made their voices heard constructively throughout this process. We also want to thank all the faculty and staff who made preparations for mitigating the effects on undergraduates of a strike that, fortunately, will now not take place. Students should consult with their instructors to confirm plans for finals and for concluding the quarter and academic year, and we look forward to joining the entire community in the coming days as we celebrate graduation.
Understanding, preventing and responding to sexual harassment
I sent the following message to all University of Washington faculty and staff today and I think it’s worth sharing with our whole community. Sexual harassment has the potential to affect everyone and it’s an issue we can and must work together to prevent and address.
As the #MeToo movement has brought attention to the pervasive issue of sexual harassment in our culture, the University of Washington reaffirms our deep commitment to preventing and addressing sexual harassment in our community. Sexual harassment is devastating for victims, and too often, survivors do not get the support they need when they come forward. Our University is dedicated to fostering working and learning environments that are free from sexual harassment and all forms of sexual violence and discrimination.
Training resources:
In-person, unit-based training can now be scheduled through your Human Resources consultant
Monthly prevention of sexual harassment in-person training through Campus Staff Human Resources. Register here
Video training Addressing Sex Discrimination & Sexual Harassment for staff, faculty and other academic personnel
Bystander training to identify and interrupt instances of interpersonal violence, including sexual harassment and sexual violence is offered regularly on the Seattle campus and by request at other UW locations
We are all responsible for understanding what sexual harassment is, taking action to prevent it from occurring, and knowing how to respond if it does occur. Beginning May 1, 2018, all schools, colleges, campuses, divisions, departments, programs, and offices can request in-person, customized training through Human Resources. In addition to the training focused on staff responsibilities offered through POD, this customized training can now be scheduled on a by-unit basis and geared to any combination of staff and faculty. Contact your Human Resources consultant to schedule a training.
These sessions will expand on a new training video, produced by Human Resources, Academic Personnel, and Compliance Services, “Preventing Sex Discrimination and Sexual Harassment in the Work Environment.” I expect every faculty and staff member to watch this training video. Look for additional training topics and resources to be made available this fall.
University policy also prohibits all employees from engaging in romantic relationships with students that create a conflict of interest or can be perceived to create a conflict of interest. It also prohibits exercising authority over a student with whom the employee has had a romantic relationship. Our policies also address potential conflicts of interest between employees. If you have questions or concerns regarding these policies, how “conflict of interest” is defined, or about developing a formal plan to manage a potential conflict, contact your supervisor, department chair or Human Resources or Academic Human Resources consultant.
The resources and trainings I’ve shared here are valuable, but we recognize that there is more work to be done. A Title IX workgroup is developing recommendations for enhanced education and outreach. Another group is addressing how to best assess our university climate on these issues, and a third is further clarifying employee responsibilities in preventing and responding to sexual violence and sexual harassment. The Title IX Steering Committee will be reviewing their recommendations in Autumn Quarter and the Faculty Senate will lead discussions about the significant role that faculty play in preventing and addressing sexual harassment. I look forward to sharing the results of this work with you.
If you have experienced or are aware of sexual harassment occurring at the UW, please inform your supervisor, department chair, unit administrator or Human Resources/AHR consultant, or call SafeCampus at 206-685-7233. You can also connect with a confidential advocate who will provide information about your rights and support resources. You may also reach out to Interim Title IX Coordinator Valery Richardson at titleix@uw.edu or 206-616-9713.
As a community devoted to public service and grounded in respect for the inherent dignity and worth of every person, we share a responsibility to ensure that sexual harassment is never tolerated here. We all have an obligation to live up to those ideals, and to support each other in fostering a safe and healthy place to work and learn.
Spring Address: The Purpose and Power of College in an Age of Skepticism
Today, I had the pleasure of addressing our community about a topic of great importance — to me and to all of us who believe in the power of higher education to advance equity, prosperity, health and understanding. I discussed the enormous value that colleges and universities deliver to students and the world at large. And I asked our faculty to consider how we can build a culture that celebrates public engagement and scholarship. Our University depends on public support and understanding — they are both who we serve and our partners. This is a conversation that I know is happening already and that I hope to continue having together.
You can read the full text here and find the slides that accompanied the address in PDF format or download them as Powerpoint slides.
Transfer students’ success is crucial part of improving access
The University of Washington is working hard to streamline the process by which transfer students enroll at the UW and do more to meet the needs of these students once they arrive. Recently, I had the pleasure of sharing some of this work with a Presidential Roundtable for the American Talent Initiative. The ATI is a collaboration among a group of public and private universities to admit and graduate more low- and middle-income students to these top institutions, and the UW is proud to be a founding member. Our efforts to ease the transition for transfer students matters because community colleges are a crucial pipeline for low-income and underrepresented students seeking a four-year degree. And increasing access to higher education isn’t only about admitting and enrolling students – it’s also about making sure they graduate and have opportunities to make the most of their Husky Experience.
At ATI, I was proud to share some of our transfer students’ successes: On our Seattle campus, about 4,000 students, or 15 percent, are transfer students, as are nearly a quarter of students across all three campuses. At the UW, transfer students also graduate at equal or higher rates than students who enter as freshmen and transfer students are more diverse and more likely to be eligible for Pell grants.
It is a point of pride that our very own Washington State Community and Technical College system is a national leader, with 34 colleges across the state serving close to 400,000 Washingtonians. Here at the UW, we have the opportunity and responsibility as a public university to create the best possible conditions for the success of these students who seek to complete a four-year degree. In recent years, we’ve worked to foster a culture that integrates transfers and meets the needs they have that a freshman might not, and we’ve done so in partnership with our state’s community and technical colleges. We meet with community college leaders quarterly to understand what hurdles their students are facing in transferring to a four-year college. As a result, we have made changes, like notifying transfer applicants of admission in the spring instead of the summer so they have more time to make plans for housing and financial aid. We have made it easier for community college students to understand what courses to take to increase their chances of admission to the UW. We have also adjusted how we support transfer students after they enroll to help them focus on a major and get the leadership training and opportunities for job preparedness that are important to their success.
Our work in this area is ongoing and we still have more to learn and do, but I am excited to be part of a larger effort to ensure that students who get their start in community colleges have pathways to attaining a four-year degree – and all of the opportunities that a four-year degree confers. The UW is not alone in this mission as a broad range of universities, from Williams College to Harvard to Ohio State focus on increasing access to higher education for low income students. The culture change this represents is huge. And it’s an opportunity for higher education to come together and learn from each other in service of a goal we all share: increase access to education for the benefit of all our nation’s people.