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Following the impactful presentation by ‘A Long Talk’ at the 2024 PSO DEI Forum, we are excited to announce a two-part follow-up series with Kamal Carter to continue the critical conversation. If you missed the forum, we welcome you joining us for this series.

Event Details:

What: “A Long Talk About The Uncomfortable Truth” – Two-Part Series

When:

• Part 1: June 25, 2024, 12- 2 PM
• Part 2: July 8, 2024, 12-2 PM

Where: Hybrid (In person on the Seattle campus and via Zoom)
Speaker: Kamal Carter, President of ‘A Long Talk’

Why Attend?

“A Long Talk” is an anti-racism activation experience that sheds light on the enduring and deliberate systems of oppression in the United States. Co-Founders, Kamal Carter and Kyle Williams have engaged universities, nonprofits, and corporations nationally to take part in   ongoing conversations about our complex and shared history that has had lasting effects on marginalized groups in society today. This follow-up event is designed to delve deeper into these truths and provide a platform for open, honest discussions about our shared history. It will also offer practical tools for engaging in these essential conversations and fostering a culture of individual change and collective anti-racist activism. Those that did not attend the 2024 Diversity Forum are welcome and encouraged to attend these two sessions.

What to Expect:

• Interactive and immersive sessions among participants and facilitators
• Honest exploration of uncomfortable truths
• Strategies for productive and respectful dialogue
• Opportunities to connect with like-minded individuals committed to anti-racism activism

How to Register:

To sign up for this transformative experience, please register at the following link by June 20, 2024: https://forms.gle/Muc1HLWKxmj9VRba6

We look forward to your participation in this vital continuation of our journey toward understanding and dismantling systemic oppression. Together, we can create a more inclusive and equitable future.

On May 17 2024, the PSO held the annual Spring Celebration with UW President Ana Mari Cauce. Staff celebrated the end of another extraordinary academic and fiscal year. The event began with refreshments and an onsite reception at Health Sciences Education Building Room 101, followed by the President’s address on Zoom. The PSO announced the new board members and officers as well as the recipients of the annual Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Excellence Award at the Celebration!

Congratulations 2024 DEIB Excellence Award Winners! More information about the recipients and all nominees will be available here soon.

• Michael Martinez – School of Aquatic & Fishery Sciences
• UW Medicine Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine, in particular the work of Gary Barbour and Jaelen Barnett
• Lalitha Subramanian​ – Continuum College

Watch President Cauce’s Zoom address:

 

If you would like to support the PSO and make events like this possible, please consider a payroll contribution or volunteer for a committee.

As part of the joint efforts of the University Task forces on Antisemitism and Islamophobia, this survey is to assess the extent to which students, faculty, and staff are experiencing discrimination or harassment, with an emphasis on those who identify as Jewish, Muslim, Israeli, Palestinian, Arab, or of Middle Eastern/North African origin, and to what degree they feel the climate is supportive and welcoming to these affected communities. The taskforces are interested in learning about the experiences and perceived climate for all UW community members. This survey is entirely voluntary to complete.

Please complete the survey here: University Task Forces on Antisemitism and Islamophobia Community Survey
Survey closes May 24.
Information about the Taskforces: University Task Forces on Antisemitism and Islamophobia
Questions about the taskforces or the survey, please email taskforces@uw.edu

The University Task Forces on Antisemitism and Islamophobia are seeking participants for focus groups designed to assess the extent to which students, faculty, and staff are experiencing discrimination or harassment due to their identities, with an emphasis on those who identify as Israeli, Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim, Arab, or of Middle Eastern/North African origin, and to what degree they feel the climate is supportive and welcoming. These focus groups are open to all members of the UW Seattle community who share these identities. If you are interested in participating, please follow either of the links below. Please note that expressing interest does not guarantee you will be invited to participate as capacity is limited.

• Link to Islamophobia Focus Group Interest Form (for those who identify as Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, and/or Middle Eastern/North African): https://survey.uaa.uw.edu/tf1 
• Link to Antisemitism Focus Group Interest Form (for those who identify as Israeli and/or Jewish): https://survey.uaa.uw.edu/tf2

The UW-IT DEI CoP invites you to a series of three events about Belonging in the Workplace.

These events are intended for all IT professionals across UW, not just UW-IT employees. You are encouraged to attend any or all of the sessions. However, the concepts we address will build on each other, so attending all three is suggested if possible. More information about the series and additional event resources will be provided on our event wiki page

Session 1: What is belonging? Why does it matter? How do we build it? 

Friday, May 10 @2pm –  Sign up for Session 1 on Trumba 

Session 2: Inclusive Language – a dimension of belonging 

Friday. May 31@10:30am – Sign up for Session 2 on Trumba

Session 3: How do I recover from a mistake?

Friday, Jun 21, 2024 @11am –  Sign up for Session 3 on Trumba 

The first session in the series will be on October 25 from 12-1 P.M. and feature Dr. Maya Angela Smith, Associate Dean for Equity, Justice, and Inclusion in the College of Arts & Sciences and faculty within French & Italian Studies. Dean Smith is a sociolinguist, and her scholarship broadly focuses on the intersection of racial and linguistic identity formations among marginalized groups in the Francophone African diaspora. In this conversation, we plan to delve into the state of diversity efforts at the UW with a discussion on the recent DEIJA assessment that Dean Smith spearheaded and gather feedback from Pro Staff on the priorities that we would like to address to further belonging. To register please visit this link: https://wholeu.admin.washington.edu/uwnetid/twuext/EventDetail.aspx?regid=&eventid=1575&eventsessionid=1530 For questions, please reach out to psoboard@uw.edu

By Leyla Salmassi, PSO DEI Committee Member and PSO Past President, and Tiana R. Cole & Russell Hugo, PSO DEI Committee Members.

We’re pleased to announce the 2023 Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) Excellence Award which seeks to highlight Professional Staff currently working at the University of Washington at our Seattle, Tacoma or Bothell campuses, including UW Medicine. Nominees include those who have demonstrated a deep commitment to the advancement of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging work directly within the UW and/or their local communities. Awardees center the voices of marginalized communities, place advancing racial, social and economic justice at the core of their work, and seek to transform longstanding systems to improve the outcomes of historically disenfranchised individuals.

We intend for this new award to honor and celebrate the tangible efforts of our University of Washington community to remedy systemic inequities and increase accessibility for students, staff and faculty. It serves as a representation of the collaborative relationships within our local communities to work in sight of the public good. The UW serves as a pillar among higher education institutions across the globe to advance diversity, equity and inclusion work. The UW community casts an impact that extends beyond the boundaries of our campus to uplift underrepresented groups and create spaces in which they can thrive. While this award serves as a moment to identify the progress made in respect to DEIB on our campus and local communities, we understand that this work is never fully finished; it requires a lifelong commitment to anti-racism and the incorporation of intersectionality in our decision-making.

On behalf of the PSO DEI Committee, we’re excited to offer this award to Professional Staff who embody the University’s value of excellence and continuously strive to create a diverse campus climate, forging pathways for others to follow in their footsteps. Further information describing evaluation criteria is listed below.

Eligibility Requirements:

• Nominees must be professional staff at the grade of 10 and below, who have been with the UW in a professional staff role for at least 6 months.
• Individuals may nominate themselves. Nominations also may be made by members of the UW community.
• Entries must be received by April 15, 2023.

Nominate and recognize a colleague who has gone above and beyond to help advance DEIB on our campuses using the Staff DEIB Excellence Award Nomination form. We look forward to learning more about all of the DEIB work being done at UW!

If you would like to support the longevity of this award, please contribute a gift to the PSO