There has been an undeniable uptick in our tempo over the past few weeks as we welcome new students, faculty and staff — and their families — to our community. To all of you, whether this is your first year at the UW or your 40th, welcome. You infuse the UW with a vast potential that is truly inspiring, and I can’t wait to see what we accomplish together this year.
Presidential Blog
UW alumni are vital to ensuring reinvestment in Washington public higher ed
We are at a pivotal moment for the future of our University. The next session of the state legislature in January will be a crucial one for the UW and all of public higher education.
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
Mourning a loss for our community
As we have feared, and as the Seattle police today confirmed, tragically, two UW students, Kornkamon Leenawarat and Thiti-On Chotechuangsab, died in an apartment near the Seattle campus earlier this week. Both were students in the UW School of Law Masters of Law program.
Learning doesn’t take a summer vacation at the UW
For the University of Washington, the summer remains a dynamic and energetic environment. So while the lines are shorter at the coffee shops and dining halls and parking spots a little easier to come by, it’s anything but quiet.
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.
What a joy to welcome the Special Olympics to the UW
It is truly wonderful to have the Special Olympics 50th Anniversary Games in Seattle this year, and the University of Washington is honored to have many of the events on our campus this week, beginning with Sunday’s opening ceremonies. Part of what made the ceremony so meaningful was hearing from so many different people, including athletes, elected officials and business leaders, about why inclusion matters and how we all benefit when everyone’s talents and voices are welcome. I think Tim Shriver, Chairman of Special Olympics International, may have put it best when he said, “Exclusion is always wrong.” I hope everyone in our community will find an opportunity to share in the joy and excitement of the games this year and that we will all seek out ways to infuse the Games’ spirit of inclusion in everything we do.
Sexual harassment in academia is a problem we can address – together
This week, I had the opportunity to take part in a livestreamed panel hosted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) about their recent report, Sexual Harassment of Women. The report offers recommendations for the cultural and systemic changes needed to prevent and respond to sexual harassment in the academic STEM fields and its release couldn’t be more timely, coinciding with the #metoo movement.
We stand with our international students and scholars
Today’s Supreme Court decision does in any way diminish our pledge to our community, here in Washington and across the globe, to remain a welcoming, inclusive and supportive place for people of every faith and nationality. We will continue to do all we can to support the members of our community.
Yes, we will miss Provost Jerry Baldasty
This Friday, Jerry Baldasty – my friend and colleague – will walk out of Gerberding Hall as the University of Washington’s provost for the last time. It won’t be his last day on campus or even his last act of service to this University to which he’s already contributed so much. But it will mark the end of an era for me, and for many of us who work, teach and learn here. All of us, in some way, have benefitted from Jerry’s leadership, wisdom and kindness, not just since he became provost, but throughout his four decades of serving the UW.