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Category: Presidential messages

Gonzaga explores partnership with UW School of Medicine in Spokane

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Dear friends,

This afternoon, Gonzaga University President Thayne McCulloh announced Gonzaga’s intention to engage in a community-focused exploration of a medical education and research partnership with the University of Washington School of Medicine in Spokane. We invited Gonzaga to consider a potential partnership as part of our efforts to expand Spokane’s medical school and biomedical research in the region.

Innovative and productive partnerships are a hallmark of the University of Washington and certainly of the UW School of Medicine, which is recognized as the top primary care, family medicine and rural medicine program in the nation. We look forward to exploring this exciting public-private partnership with Gonzaga and the Spokane community. You can read Gonzaga’s announcement here, as well as learn more about the University of Washington’s expansion plans and growing presence in Spokane.

We will now begin to develop and identify the specific details of a UW-GU partnership. In the coming weeks, both universities will engage with key constituencies on the role and value of a UW-GU partnership, and how it could best meet the needs of our students, Spokane, our respective institutions and the state.

Thank you for your continued support of excellence in medical education for the citizens of Washington.

Sincerely,

Michael K. Young

CNN Films explores the Ivory Tower

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We are in the midst of an important national conversation about the value of a university education. CNN Films has explored the costs and benefits of a college degree in a provocative documentary called “Ivory Tower.” The film takes a broad look at issues many universities are facing, including poor graduation rates, the growing student debt load and the challenges and obstacles — both financial and, in many cases, cultural — faced by low-income and first-generation students. And while I applaud the exploration of these issues and encourage you to watch it, I also offer what can be lost in the discussion: that some public universities are pioneering solutions in passionate, world-class ways. The University of Washington is leading the pack.

The role of public higher education as an engine of social mobility and societal advancement is at the core of what the UW stands for as one of the world’s great public universities. A central tenet of our mission is to do all we can to ensure that any student who has worked hard and earned the academic credentials to be admitted to the UW can be here, regardless of economic circumstances. We are proud of our record as a gateway to boundless opportunity for all students. As a society, we must ensure this gateway continues to be open.

A recent study by the Economic Policy Institute found that in 2013 Americans with a four-year degree earned on average 98 percent more per hour than those without a college degree. Similarly, the U.S. Census Bureau reports that the lifetime earnings of college graduates are nearly $1 million more than those with a high school diploma. For individuals, a university degree can be the difference between poverty and prosperity.

College graduates are also most likely to embrace — as part of their life’s endeavors — a commitment to making the world a better place. They are 43 percent more likely to volunteer in their communities, according to Tufts University’s civicyouth.org, whose data also suggest that more than two-thirds of young people with bachelor’s degrees engage with our political process: They vote. For American society, indeed for the world, these virtues are the requirements of our shared progress. They include the understanding that prosperous and vibrant communities, healthy families, active citizenship — indeed democracy itself — often require a commitment to “we” ahead of “me.”

At the UW, we certainly have not escaped the challenges of the past decade. The great recession accelerated a decades-long shift in the business model for public higher education, reducing state support and placing the lion’s share of costs squarely on students and their parents. But as is our way at the UW, we have faced these issues head-on and with proven success.

For more than 150 years, we have been providing students from all walks of life one of the finest educations in the world. At the same time, we’ve developed programs to foster the economic diversity of our campus populations for generations to come. A third of UW undergraduates receive support through the Husky Promise, a program that guarantees that full tuition and standard fees will be covered by grant or scholarship support for eligible Washington state students. Thirty percent of our private endowment funds scholarships. We’ve built academic support programs to help all students be successful, including the 30 percent who are the first in their families to attend college. Our graduation rates are high, with more than 80 percent of students graduating within a six-year period.

We have proven and continue to prove that a public university can be both racehorse and workhorse: providing a world-class education while still being accessible to all.

The mission of higher education will continue to be debated, in political venues, in classrooms, in community centers, in films. There are important issues for all of us to address. But at the UW, we remain resolutely optimistic. Every day, thousands of young people pursue their dreams here — some would say the American dream — and accomplish extraordinary things. We are committed to remaining their gateway and guide — for the good of all of us.

Sincerely,
Michael K Young signature
Michael K. Young

Your comments and engagement are welcome through UW Impact.

Cost-benefit report on medical school expansion in Spokane

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UW Regent Orin Smith and I were in Spokane today sharing the findings of a comprehensive, independent analysis of the costs and benefits of medical school expansion efforts in Spokane and Eastern Washington.

The report, conducted by Tripp Umbach, comes on the heels of a 2010 study — commissioned by Greater Spokane Incorporated — which found that rapidly expanding the existing UW-led medical program in Spokane into a four-year medical school would contribute to an estimated economic impact of $1.6 billion and 9,000 jobs over a 20-year period. The report released today reaffirms those findings. It also confirms that an expanded UW School of Medicine in Spokane is the most cost-effective use of taxpayer funds to grow the state’s physician workforce.

Growing the UW School of Medicine in Spokane has several distinct advantages. First, we are poised for rapid expansion now. This legislative session (starting in January) we will ask the Legislature for funding to double our medical school class size in Spokane. When fully enrolled, the school will have 320 students, with 80 graduating each year, nearly as large as our class size in Seattle.

Next, the UW has an established track record of creating medical residencies in Washington state, both as a medical provider and as a partner with healthcare organizations across the state. As the Tripp Umbach report notes, increasing the number of medical school graduates is only part of the equation. The highest predictor of where doctors will stay and practice is where they do their medical residencies. In order for graduates to get jobs in our state and practice in areas we need them most, we must have more residencies. The UW is working with the state Medical Association on a request for the next legislative session to expand residency programs in underserved areas of the state, especially in Eastern Washington.

Finally, the UW’s national leadership in research and commercialization will fuel economic development in Spokane. The faculty of the UW School of Medicine are the best in the country at competing for and attracting research dollars to support their work. The UW also leads the country in startups and innovation. UW faculty already participate in 40 joint research projects in Spokane — from behavioral health to diabetes research — and with an expanded UW School of Medicine, we will build on our existing collaborations and seek new opportunities in a city that is clearly entrepreneurial and ambitious.

There is still a lot of work to do. While our successful 40-year medical education partnership with Washington State University is ending, we are committed to expanded opportunities for growth and impact in Spokane. As we grow, we also look forward to a more visible and active presence in the community. We’re in the process of establishing a dedicated leadership team and cultivating new academic partnerships. And, as you may have heard, our bid to transform the city of Spokane Visitor Center into a UW headquarters for our community development efforts has been recommended to the City Council, and we are optimistic it will be approved next month.

It’s an exciting time for the University of Washington in Spokane. We owe a great debt of gratitude to the incredible Spokane medical community, business community and political leadership that have helped us achieve so much to date. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the community to help grow a vibrant, innovative economy in Spokane, and to ensure all Washington residents have access to the highest quality health care.

I invite you to read Tripp Umbach’s complete analysis online.

We’re very optimistic about our future here with you, together.

Sincerely,
Michael K Young signature
Michael K. Young

Progress in sexual assault prevention at the UW

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We are in the midst of a transformative national conversation about sexual assault on college campuses. Two years ago, I established the UW’s Task Force on Sexual Assault Prevention and Response, a group of students, staff and academic personnel, to take the lead on this issue. The group established guiding principles to lay the foundation for creating cultural change, including: highlighting that the majority of sexual assaults are perpetrated by a person known to the victim; challenging the propensity for victim blaming; and understanding and defining the meaning and nature of consent. And on campus today, the UW hosted the Washington State Council of Presidents’ Conference on Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention. Leading innovators and researchers working on sexual assault response, prevention and education issues — including our own faculty and staff — shared critical information and raising awareness about this issue in important ways.

As a public institution the UW has a leadership responsibility to help resolve this national, societal issue, and we are fully committed to doing all we can to prevent and properly respond to incidents in our community.

Over the past year, the Task Force has made significant progress in our campuswide prevention efforts:

  • More than 7,000 incoming first-year and transfer students completed sexual assault prevention training during fall 2014 orientation;
  • The UW launched a comprehensive sexual assault website last month that includes support and reporting resources;
  • We funded two permanent positions: a Title IX investigator, responsible for ensuring an investigation and disciplinary process tailored to handling sexual assault, and a training and program coordinator, charged with creating a comprehensive education and outreach program for students, staff and academic personnel.

Last January, I encouraged everyone in our community to read the Task Force’s full reportand to personally commit to being part of the solution to this systemic issue in higher education. I am asking the same again today. The Task Force’s remaining implementation items for 2015 include developing robust institutional data collection and reporting procedures, updating the Student Conduct Code to be more student centered and easy to navigate in addressing sexual assault investigations and disciplinary processes, and implementing a comprehensive education and outreach program.

Thanks to the tireless work of our faculty, staff, students and the Task Force, led by Ellen Taylor, and to our institutional commitment to ending sexual violence, I am optimistic that we can — and will — lead the way to safer communities for everyone.

Sincerely,

Michael K. Young

Accomplishments and aspirations

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Dear Students, Faculty and Staff:

During this Homecoming weekend, Husky friends, family and alumni visiting campus will have a chance to participate in our extensive efforts to operate as a sustainable university. For the past few years, our entire community — students, faculty and staff — has done amazing work to be responsible citizens and caretakers of our environment. As a great tribute to what happens when our community works together toward a common goal, just last night Seattle Business Magazine awarded the University of Washington the Community Impact Award for Sustainability. This is a wonderful achievement. Congratulations to all who made it happen!

The Community Impact Award for Sustainability is the latest example of the UW’s exceptional record of student, faculty and staff excellence. Our research, teaching and public engagement have built a reputation that inspires our work together, energizes those who support us and adds value to the degrees our students earn. Our standing in the region, nation and world — including our recent No. 10 ranking by China’s Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s world university rankings — reflects the UW’s real impact on people’s lives and our values as an institution.

As I said in my Annual Address last week, our vision as a university is simple yet profound: to be the greatest public university in the world, as measured by our impact on our students’ lives, on our region and on people around the world. In the address, I described how we advance this vision in four critical ways:

  • Through the Husky Student Experience, where we unleash the curiosity and potential of every student and in the process transform their lives and our world, one student at a time, one spark at a time.
  • Through the profound impact of our world-class research, here and around the globe. Virtually every major issue our society faces today, from Ebola to early education, is being addressed by somebody affiliated with the UW. We must continue to support this work at all levels — by attracting top talent, securing resources and engaging the best minds in the world as collaborators.
  • Through innovation and creativity, and our emerging Innovation Agenda. From addressing the STEM shortage, to bringing our best creativity and innovation to bear on both technology and societal challenges, we are using our long-standing track record in this arena to deepen student engagement and expand locally and globally.
  • And finally, through our deep commitment to access and the public good, which permeates everything we do. We are proud of our role as a catalyst for social mobility and as a place where we focus our research and discovery on the ways in which it can have the greatest impact.

You may have also noticed we are telling our story in bold new ways. I’ve heard countless times that we are the Northwest’s “best kept secret” and would like to change that. We will use this video, Be Boundless, and other media to tell our story better, and I hope in the process be clearer in communicating what we stand for: a belief in possibility, in unleashing human potential and in the undaunted quest for discovery.

Tomorrow is the UW’s 153rd birthday celebration. We have a lot for which to be proud, thanks to your passion for excellence and steadfast commitment to discovery and education for a better world. Please join me, Provost Ana Mari Cauce and our campus community in Red Square as we celebrate all that we have accomplished — and all that we will — on behalf of those we serve.

Celebrating the launch of Startup Hall

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Seattle is a global hub for innovation, and much of that spirit and mindset begins at the UW. Our shared passion for entrepreneurism unites us as a university and a community of change creators. We are committed to fostering innovation, not just because of its economic impact, but because we know it can create a world of good.

Last year, the UW spun out a record 18 startup companies based on work done by our professors and students. During the last decade, more than a hundred UW-based startups have grown out of collaborations between our students, faculty and the business sector.

These bootstrap companies are the inspiration for the creation of a new Seattle home for passionate startup founders, funders and mentors: Startup Hall.

An exciting partnership between the UW and three local startup leaders — Founder’s Co-op, Techstars Seattle and UP Global — Startup Hall opened its doors just today. It’s the proving ground where entrepreneurs will ignite new ideas and test their visions, reaching out from the UW to the entire Puget Sound region.

Startup Hall will also launch a new era in the University District as it attracts other early-stage companies seeking to gain a foothold and grow their businesses.

This nexus of innovation is located just steps from campus, where scientists and students are conducting world-class research every day. The companies that call Startup Hall home are independent from the UW, but their proximity will spark unique connections between UW-based innovators and Seattle’s thriving startup community.

Startup Hall, the UW and the entire University District are poised to become an epicenter for innovation. By providing unparalleled experiences and support for students and entrepreneurs, we believe that our culture of commercialization will propel the greater good.

Research support from the NIH helps

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What does it take to be the first in innovation, to solve the challenges that face our region, our country and our world? Certainly, it takes tenacious, brilliant minds, with a drive not only to answer the questions but also to question the answers. And, just as importantly, it takes a strong, consistent commitment of national support.

Earlier this week, we welcomed two of the most ardent supporters of groundbreaking UW research to talk about its future, Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, and Patty Murray, Washington state’s U.S. senator. Dr. Collins and Sen. Murray met with the top leaders in the Pacific Northwest’s NIH-funded research organizations, as well as groups that support and promote research development at our incomparable South Lake Union (SLU) campus.

Our group joined Dr. Paul Ramsey, CEO of UW Medicine and dean of the UW School of Medicine, for a tour of two labs at SLU. One was Michael Gale’s lab. Professor Gale and colleagues at Kineta, a Seattle biotech company, have identified compounds that stop the spread of Ebola and other viruses in laboratory experiments on human cells. His team is sharing in a five-year, $8.1 million NIH grant to identify compounds that rev up the natural infection-fighting ability of cells, allowing them to repel many types of viruses. This is just one example of how UW research can translate into saving lives around the world.

The NIH is the largest funder of biomedical research in the world, investing nearly $30 billion each year in medical research. Last year alone, $835 million of that funding flowed into our state through our SLU campus. Yet the federal investment in NIH has not kept pace with the need. During the last decade — and particularly following the government sequester in late 2013 — federal funding of the NIH has steadily declined, putting on hold research efforts here in Washington and across the country.

In addition to biomedical breakthroughs, the NIH’s investment in research has led to new startups in the region, creating high-quality jobs, attracting additional investment from outside the state and increasing the state’s exports. And at a time of unprecedented scientific opportunity, it is critical that the United States make forward-thinking investments that promote medical breakthroughs and maintain our international leadership in biomedical research. We appreciate Sen. Murray’s and Dr. Collins’ continued support of our boundless pursuit of the greater common good.

Fostering opportunities for our veterans

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Veterans make for some of the best students. They hold discipline, drive and innovation in the highest regard. They know when to lead and when to follow. When they fall down, vets get right back up. And they know that education — with the help of trusted compatriots — is the key to overcoming any obstacle.

As we celebrate Independence Day, I want to showcase how the University of Washington is committed to helping our veterans transition from service to the classroom. Combined, they’ve served thousands of tours of duty; our duty as a university is to acknowledge and reward their service with support.

Last spring, I was honored to meet a host of Husky veterans at UW Tacoma who are transforming their civilian lives through the Veterans Incubator for Better Entrepreneurship (VIBE) program. It’s a first-in-the-nation approach to developing the talent of military veterans as entrepreneurs and gives them access to valuable resources — idea development, mentoring, coaches, financial advice, work space and networking — while they pursue their UW degrees.

As deployments in Afghanistan wind down, military personnel are concluding their active duty at nearby Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM) and returning to civilian life. JBLM and UW Tacoma leaders founded VIBE to enhance the South Sound’s start-up culture and to provide more options to a group of men and women perfectly suited to entrepreneurism.

VIBE’s focus on developing talent and turning ideas into viable businesses is part of the environment of opportunity we’re fostering at the UW. Watch this video to learn more about VIBE and the extraordinary veterans who are leading the charge in a new chapter of Husky entrepreneurism.

The power of unleashing ideas

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One of the things I most appreciate about a major research institution like the University of Washington is that our ideas are limitless. In every UW college, school, program and discipline, people are individually and collectively engaged in the pursuit of ideas with the potential to become something transformative. With thousands collaborating in the creative process each day, the UW is able to sustain an environment of ongoing discovery, and the possibilities for innovation are boundless.

Much of the university’s focus is on finding ways to unleash this vast storehouse of human ideas and potential, and one of my principal endeavors is to lead that effort. We strive to empower people and to create an environment in which everyone feels encouraged to think expansively and broadly for the greater common good. At the same time, we aim to provide people the freedom to innovate, knowing they have the support and resources to take risks, choose unexplored paths and try bold approaches. And when great ideas are conceived, we take them where they have the capacity to make a difference.

Innovating with a purpose is and always has been fundamental to the UW’s mission. Like many others engaged in the creative process, our ideas are not complete until we connect them with the larger world, to the great opportunities and challenges of our time. One way we achieve this is through commercialization — licensing faculty research or incubating student startups.

Korvata Inc., a UW student-led startup, won the top award at the 2014 UW Environmental Innovation Challenge. Launched in April, the company provides customers in the food and beverage and consumer-packaged goods industries with cutting-edge alternative chemistry products to help mitigate their environmental impact. Members of this student team succeeded in turning their passion for cleantech into a marketable opportunity that meets a genuine need, and many other UW students are engaged in similar pursuits.

Photo of members of the Korvata startup team
Korvata Inc., a UW student-led startup, won the top award at the 2014 UW Environmental Innovation Challenge.

Commercialization and incubating startups are not the only creative ways we link with the larger community. Ideas with impact can be found in scholarly publishing, delivering health care, crafting public policy and creating partnerships with the community on a host of activities essential to a vibrant, successful society. Indeed, nearly every aspect of our world is predicated on ideas that can be applied in solid, practical ways.

No matter how our faculty, staff and students innovate, the UW is committed to providing the opportunities and the resources that will unleash their ideas. This is the higher purpose of higher education — where the real strength of our thinkers, creators and doers will flourish.

Gifts from Washington Research Foundation fund Husky innovation

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President Young recently sent an email to the University community announcing a new, generous gift from one of the UW’s biggest supporters, Washington Research Foundation. Below is the official email announcing the details of the gift.

 

Dear Colleagues,

New opportunities are on the horizon for Huskies and the people we serve, thanks to an investment in innovation by Washington Research Foundation (WRF). Today, we announce a $31.2 million investment by WRF in four UW research initiatives, a show of support that speaks volumes to the UW’s strength as a center for enterprising innovators in our region.

The size and scope of WRF’s gifts to the UW are unprecedented. This represents entrepreneurial Washington investing in its research university and makes a strong statement about the importance of local investment. The four teams of grant recipients are among the UW’s most productive and creative faculty. We are incredibly proud of their achievements and deeply grateful to the foundation for its vote of confidence in their work.

The first award is an $8 million gift to launch a postdoctoral fellowship program for the Institute for Protein Design (IPD). Postdocs are critical to the success of the IPD’s outcomes, and this investment will help bring ideas out of the laboratory and into the lives of people who will benefit most from breakthroughs in protein design.

WRF also committed $7.2 million to jumpstart an Institute for Neuroengineering, which will bring faculty, students and postdoctoral researchers from several disciplines on board to develop new technologies for people affected by neural disorders.

The eScience Institute was awarded $9.3 million to embolden its global leadership in Big Data. The funding will support the institute’s work to find data-intensive breakthroughs in a breadth of disciplines.

And the Clean Energy Institute will receive $6.7 million to help recruit innovative faculty and postdoctoral fellows focused on advancing solutions in solar energy production, storage and delivery.

Details on each of these gifts are available on the UW Today website.

This is a watershed moment for the UW and WRF. Through this incredible partnership, we will bring our shared vision of innovation and implementing ideas into action to address some of our greatest challenges. Our sincere thanks to Washington Research Foundation. We are fortunate to have such a good friend.

Sincerely,
Michael K Young signature
Michael K. Young