It’s day 12 of the 105-day 2025 legislative session.
UW College of Arts & Sciences advocates for $125M investment in chemical sciences facilities
Yesterday, UW College of Arts & Sciences Dean Dianne Harris, Chemistry Department Chair Munira Khalil, and UW Chemistry alumnus Bruce Montgomery met with capital budget leaders to advocate for the construction and modernization of chemical sciences facilities at UW Seattle. In their meeting with Rep. Mari Leavitt, they met a current UW student studying political science, who is also interning for Rep. Leavitt during session.
Chemistry is a core program at the UW and is required for students in most STEM and health sciences degree programs. Current facilities serve more than 6,000 students each quarter and house chemical sciences research that drives discoveries in fields such as AI, quantum computing, clean energy, and biology. Current facilities were built in 1937 and 1957 and no longer meet the needs of modern science education and research. New facilities are necessary to meet increasing course demand, boost STEM degree production and improve the workforce pipeline, foster partnerships with local employers, and attract and retain world-class faculty conducting cutting edge research.
The UW received $5 million in the last legislative session to design the project and is now asking the state to appropriate $125 million for its construction. Given the size of this request, it is the only building construction request on the University’s legislative agenda. This request was fully funded in former Governor Inslee’s proposed capital budget. In partnership with the state, the UW and its philanthropic partners will contribute approximately 55% of the total project cost.
Policy introductions and UW engagement
To date, more than 1,000 bills have been introduced this session, and the UW is actively monitoring and engaging on a number of them. Some include:
- Senate Bill (SB) 5158 / House Bill (HB) 1298 concerns student athlete insurance.
- SB 5275 modifies funding and award levels for the passport to careers program and eligibility for the Washington College Grant.
- SB 5308 codifies the Washington Guaranteed Admissions Programs and requires student notifications.
- SB 5355 improves safety at institutions of higher education while supporting student survivors of sexual assault.
- SB 5451 / HB 1360 concerning advancement of quantum economic development.
To find introduced legislation, visit the Washington State Legislature’s website.
Questions?
The Office of State Relations is in Olympia throughout the session advocating on behalf of the UW. For questions about the UW’s legislative priorities or advocacy efforts, please reach out to Morgan Hickel at mhickel@uw.edu.