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Washington University in St. Louis

Undergraduate School

Mailing Address
One Brookings Drive
St. Louis, Missouri 63130
Phone
(314) 935-5000
Email address
admissions@wustl.edu
School Information
"Our mission drives who we are as a university. As we accept the challenge of our mission’s goals of inclusion and excellence, we are always evolving to meet the needs of our current and prospective students as well as our alumni, faculty and staff. We focus on strategic priorities that produce the most impact toward our goal of enhancing the lives of our students, our community and our world." The university enrolls over 14,500 students, employs over 3,600 faculty, and offers over 300 programs. (Source: https://wustl.edu/about/)
General Information
Washington University in St. Louis has taken exploratory steps in implementing social justice into its operations. The university is considering adding racial justice to its curricula. The university has not yet made a decision as to whether it will add racial justice to its curricula or how such an addition would be made (i.e. a new course, training module). It is not yet clear whether "racial justice" curriculum addition will contain elements of C.R.T. See developments below.

Actions Taken

Anti-Racism, Bias, and Diversity Training
  • In a Health Equity & Justice lesson, which is included in WashU School of Medicine's required 'Gateway Curriculum' that was rolled out in 2020, lecturer Kaytlin Reedy-Rogier spoke to students about implicit bias and systemic oppression, said that medicine "has a really bad racism issue", and that if any of her students "try to fight [her] or debate [her], [she] will shut that s*** down real fast."
Curriculum Changes and Requirements
Program and Research Funding
  • The school’s Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity and Equity funded a series of talks on mindfulness and anti-racism.
  • The Brown School at Washington University has the Race and Opportunity lab which “examines race, opportunity, and social mobility with an emphasis on informing policies, interventions, and intra-professional practice.”
  • WashU's Office of the Provost has a Diversity and Inclusion Grant program, which was started in 2009. Funding is given to proposals designed to strengthen and promote diversity on campus by "improving the university’s work environment, recruitment and retention of diverse faculty and staff, and cultural competence." During the five-year cycle, the program awarded almost $850,000 in grant funding to faculty and staff for 47 projects. Awards ranged in size to a maximum of $30,000.
Resources
  • As part of Black History Month, the Brown School of the university hosted “Advocacy and Allyship: Towards a More Racially Just St. Louis” panel discussion to advance racial equity.
  • The Brown School at Washington University hosted an event in honor of Black History Month asking, “Is Professionalism a Racist Construct?” The talk discussed how professionalism has “been used to silence and marginalize people of color.”
  • On December 7, 2022, the WashU Olin School of Business hosted a virtual discussion with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi on antiracism and social justice. Dr. Kendi shared his thoughts on recent progress in antiracism efforts, the role businesses can play in antiracism efforts, and how individuals can work to make change within their organization.
  • WashU's Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts has a list of racial justice resources, including guides and educational materials to learn from, projects and campaigns to get involved with, and books to read.
  • The Brown School at WashU has a social justice resources page. Its list of resources is compiled into eight categories: Racial Equity Work, How Can White People Help?, Specific Resources for Families, Activism During a Pandemic, For International Students, Advocacy and Social Media, How to Influence Your Close Circles, and Systemic Change.
  • WashU's Office of the Provost Danforth Faculty Affairs and Diversity has a Distinguished Visiting Scholars program that brings to the university historically underrepresented scholars who have "distinguished themselves as leaders and innovators in the academy, in business or in other fields of endeavor."
  • WashU has an Academy for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, which is supposed to be the "primary forum for changing climate and culture by housing diversity and inclusion resources, including training resources, support for campus affinity groups, and annual events and recognition ceremonies."
  • WashU has a Center for Diversity and Inclusion.
Symbolic Actions
  • WashU's Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences has an anti-racism statement titled "Black Lives Matter: A message of support and a call to action." The department "[acknowledges] that systemic racism and implicit biases are pervasive across academia, including in the geosciences", "[encourages] incorporation of environmental and climate justice issues throughout [its] courses and in seminars", and aim to "aid in dismantling the systemic racism that exists in this country."
Last updated March 20th, 2024
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