The face of diversity at the University of Washington
Focus on:
celebrating 40 years of diversity
opening the doors
1968 protests spur uw to become a leader in diversity Office of Minority Affairs & diversity THEN AND NOW erasmo gamboa’s path to success
1968 Black Student Union to be honored by FEOP
SPOTLIGHT UW MENTOR PROGRAM
SPRING 2008
in this issue Focus on: celebrating 40 years of diversity
DEPARTMENTS Points of View.................................................. 4 Once Around Campus...................................... 5 UW hires first deaf faculty to teach ASL Professor, Mother, Genius “Three Dawg Night” The 360 View Milestones..................................................... 10 People in the News........................................ 10 UW Bothell.................................................... 11 UW Tacoma................................................... 11 In Memory..................................................... 11 FACES Richard Jones................................................. 12 Rita Zawaideh................................................ 13
Opening the Doors........................................................ 6 Spotlight: UW Mentor Program................. 14
After a group of courageous students protested the lack of diversity at the UW, the University became a leader in the field
A View from the UWAA President................ 15
From struggling to shining : Erasmo Gamboa’s story........... 8 Fast Facts about the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity........................................................8 Then and Now in the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity......................................................8
The Soul of the Asian Community When Assunta Ng, ’74, ’76, ’79, arrived in Seattle from Hong Kong, she saw the need for a Chinese newpaper in Seattle. So 25 years ago, she created the Northwest Asian Weekly and the Seattle Chinese Post. Based in the International District/Chinatown area of Seattle, both papers have become a beacon for the Asian American community in the greater Seattle area. Besides giving a voice to the Asian Pacific Islander community, the Northwest Asian Weekly, Seattle Chinese Post and Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation organize a variety of events and programs throughout the year, including the Women of Color Empowered Lunch, Summer Youth Leadership Program and Top Contributors to the Asian Community. The two papers celebrated their 25th anniversary with a gala in October that drew a crowd of 1,500 people, including two governors. Assunta Ng was photographed in Hing Hay Park in Seattle’s International District on December 27, 2007 by Karen Orders.
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THE FACE OF DIVERSITY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
1968 Black Student Union to be honored by FEOP........................................... 16 Correction Mary Levin of University Photography took the cover photo that appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Viewpoints. We accidentally credited the wrong photographer. Viewpoints regrets the error.
Cover photo and photos above courtesy Seattle Post-Intelligencer Collection, MOHAI
snapshot
Campus Datebook.......................................... 15
FOUNDED 2004 VIEWPOINTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE
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VIEWPOINTS STAFF PUBLISHER: Chuck Blumenfeld, ’66, ’69 Associate PUBLISHER: Sue Brockmann, ’72 EDITOR: JON MARMOR, ’94 graphic DESIGNERs: Michele Locatelli, Amie Ross EDITORIAL INTERNS: Chantal L. Carrancho, Amy Huang LIAISON TO OFFICE OF MINORITY AFFAIRS: ROSA RAMON STAFF WRITERS: COURTNEY ACITELLI, ERIC MCHENRY PHOTOGRAPHY: MARY LEVIN, KAREN ORDERS, KATHY SAUBER
Vol. 4, No. 1, March 2008. Viewpoints is published in the fall and spring quarters. It is a publication of the University of Washington Alumni Association and the University of Washington. Opinions expressed are those of the contributors or editors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the University or the UW Alumni Association.
PAUL RUCKER, ’95, ’02, Director of Alumni Relations, UWAA, Chair JERRY BALDASTY, ’72, ’78, Chair, UW Dept. of Communication SUE BROCKMANN, ’72, Director of Marketing, Communications and Revenue Development, UWAA Malik Davis, ’94, Associate Director of Constituent Relations, UWAA COLLEEN FUKUI-SKETCHLEY, ’94, Diversity Affairs Specialist, Nordstrom ROGER L. GRANT, Board member, Multicultural Alumni Partnership Sheila Edwards Lange, Vice President for Minority Affairs and Diversity TAMARA LEONARD, Associate Director, Center for Global Studies, Jackson School of International Studies STEPHANIE MILLER, Assistant Vice President, Community and Public Relations, Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity SUZANNE ORTEGA, Vice Provost & Dean, The Graduate School NORM PROCTOR, ’74, ’77, UWAA President Rosa Ramon, Director of Communications, Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity LOIS PRICE SPRATLEN, ’76, UW Ombudsman JUDY YU, Director of Communications, Shoreline Community College GEORGE ZENO, Executive Director, Scholarships and Student Programs
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once around campus
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of view
Support the MAP Endowed Scholarship Fund Support the MAP Endowed Scholarship Fund by going to www.washington.edu/alumni/clubs/map.html
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Sheila Edwards Lange, Ph.D., ’00, ’06 Vice President for Minority Affairs and Vice Provost for Diversity
Online giving http://uwfoundation.org/diversity Or contact: Greg Lewis, Director of Development for Diversity, 206-685-3013 or at lewisg@u.washington.edu
new American Sign Language curriculum this past fall, is the University’s first deaf faculty member. The ASL classes—which students can use to fulfill their foreign language requirement for graduation—are offered through the UW’s Department of Linguistics. Forshay, who was born deaf and grew up in a mostly deaf family, taught ASL at Puyallup High School and at Bellevue Community College before joining the UW. Forshay’s 20 years of experience teaching ASL will provide UW students with an opportunity to learn about ASL history and engage with the deaf community. Richard Ladner, a professor of computer science and engineering who is the hearing child of deaf parents and is active in working with the deaf community, was instrumental in pushing for the UW’s ASL curriculum.
Professor, Mother, Genius Yoky Matsuoka, who builds lifelike prosthetics that she plans to connect directly to the brain so they can mimic the motions real hands make, was honored in the fall when she was named a 2007 MacArthur Fellow by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The honor— known as a “Genius Award”—comes with $500,000 that Matsuoka can use any way she likes. Matsuoka, an associate professor of computer science and engineering and mother of three, was also named among the “Brilliant 10 scientists” by Popular Science magazine.
Photo by Kathy Sauber.
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Lance Forshay, who joined the University of Washington faculty to teach the
UW coaches honored at “Three Dawg Night” Seattle’s African American community came together
Photo courtesy of the MacArthur Foundation
he road leading to celebrating 40 years of diversity at the UW by the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity (OMA&D) began with the courageous actions of students and their demand for change. The movement for equity and access at the UW that was ignited by the 1968 members of the Black Student Union touched the lives of thousands of students including my own. Their efforts and the willingness of the UW administration to do the right thing offered me and others who came through the door since 1968 a very different student experience. Although as a student I sometimes felt isolated and faced uncomfortable encounters, I knew there were sources of support like OMA&D and GO-MAP (Graduate Opportunities & Minority Achievement Program). These offices exist to help students because of the 1968 actions of a small number of students of color who put their education and careers on the line for change. I’ve often thought about our responsibility to fulfill the hopes and promise of those 1968 students who struggled to make the UW more inclusive. In my current role as head of OMA&D, I have high expectations of and for students. Students of color should fill seats at the UW, graduate and fulfill their dreams. I believe to do less is to dishonor those who came before us. An education puts us in a much better position to not only care for ourselves but to give back to our communities. My fervent hope is that current students, alumni, and community partners will choose to be engaged with the UW as we build on diversity efforts started in 1968. Together we can maintain the legacy of educational opportunity for future generations.
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Justin Simmons, ’93 MAP President, 2006-2008
UW hires first deaf faculty to teach ASL
Photo by Mary Levin
I
n the four decades since the UW Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity was founded, our University has built a national reputation for promoting equal opportunity for all students and celebrating the incredible diversity all around us. And for the last 13 years, the Multicultural Alumni Partnership has worked successfully within the UW Alumni Association to expand that legacy at UWAA and reach out to alumni and the community, in an effort to reengage alums of color and help ensure a welcoming, nurturing environment for UW students of every background. The 13th annual Bridging the Gap Breakfast held last fall was the most successful MAP event to date, with approximately 750 supporters in attendance, new corporate sponsors onboard and record contributions given for student scholarships! We could not have done it all without the support of our campus-wide coalition partners, including the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity. MAP looks forward to OMA&D’s Friends of the Educational Opportunity Program Celebration on May 7, when the prestigious Charles E. Odegaard Award will be presented to members of the 1968 UW Black Student Union, the group that galvanized the institutional changes that made diversity into policy at the UW. As a university community committed to academic excellence, equity and social justice, we have come a long way together in the past 40 years, but our work is far from over. In the words of UW President Mark Emmert, “We need to recommit to and expand upon our efforts to address the issue of diversity as one of the most important core values of the University of Washington.” Will you join us in our ongoing efforts? MAP meetings are held at 5:30 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month at the UW Alumni House. We would love to see you there!
October 10 for “Three Dawg Night” to celebrate the historic appointment of the UW’s three African American head coaches: Tyrone Willingham (football), Lorenzo Romar (men’s basketball), and Tia Jackson (women’s basketball). The event, held at the First AME Church in Seattle’s Capitol Hill, also honored the appointment of Sheila Edwards Lange as the UW’s vice president for minority affairs and vice provost for diversity. The event was hosted by the UW Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity and the UW Alumni Association in partnership with Eli Lilly, The Breakfast Group, TABOR 100, African American Prosperity Partnership, Greater Seattle Chapter of The Links Inc., Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle and the Washington State NAACP. UWAA President Norm Proctor, ‘74, ‘77, Greg Lewis, ‘94, and Nate Miles, ‘82, spoke at the event. viewpoints
es attle Tim Photo by
Bruce M cKim © Se
Focus on: celebrating 40 years of diversity
After a group of courageous students protested the lack of diversity at the UW, the University became a leader in the field
Opening the doors In 1966, Larry Gossett left the University of Washington in his sophomore year to spend 18 months in Harlem as a Volunteer in Service to America (VISTA). He left the campus as a naïve middle-class “Negro” and returned in the fall of 1967 as a Black Power African American revolutionary.
By Julie Garner Photos courtesy Seattle PostIntelligencer Collection, mohai
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Inspired by the Civil Rights and Black Power movements and determined to end institutional racism at the UW, Gossett and other students of color on campus organized the Black Student Union. The BSU became an umbrella organization for all students of color, and a powerful force for change. In March 1968, the BSU presented UW President Charles Odegaard with a list of demands. “We were not going to tolerate any vacillation or half-stepping. We wanted change and we wanted it now,” Gossett says.
When there were no signs of change, the BSU students literally scaled the heights of academia by rope-climbing up several flights of the Administration Building to enter the President’s office through the windows. They staged a sit-in that lasted four hours and 15 minutes until Odegaard and the Faculty Senate agreed to their five demands. The demands: that the University begin aggressively recruiting minorities and disadvantaged whites. They wanted minority recruitment extended to faculty, administrators and counselors. They wanted minority inclusion in policy-making and a center on campus for academic and cultural development. Today, as the UW celebrates 40 years of diversity, those demands don’t look so radical. However, they were the first wedge the multicultural group of student activists used to pry open doors of opportunity that had been largely closed to minorities at the University for more than 100 years. “The initial courageous act of a group of students in 1968 and the infrastructure that followed really changed the history of the University, the city, the state and the region in terms of diversity, access and leadership in the community,” says Dr. Sheila Edwards Lange, ’00, ’06, vice president for Minority Affairs (OMA&D) and vice provost for Diversity. In 1968, out of about 32,000 students (including those in graduate and professional schools), the percentage of students of color enrolled at the UW was only 4 percent. Of the 2,200 courses offered in the arts and humanities, the African American students couldn’t
identify one textbook written by a Black, Latino or Native American writer, Gossett recalls. There were two African American faculty members and not one black administrator or counselor. The BSU and its supporters on campus helped turn their demands into programs and policies that have born fruit for 40 years. Many of today’s leaders in law, medicine, education and other professions were once minority students at the UW. Today, minorities account for 30% of the University’s student body. There was no blueprint for how to open access to the UW, no programs to model or research to evaluate. Robert Flennaugh, ’64, was the first African American graduate of the UW School of Dentistry and the first African American member of the Board of Regents in 1969. He remembers that the University got the Special Education Program for minority students going “full bore” as quickly as possible. (This program morphed into the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity.) “You have to remember,” Flennaugh says, “the program started from nothing.” The OMA&D helped give Frank Irigon, ’77, ’79, the keys to success. “The environment would have been alienating but I made my own environment with the Asian Student Coalition and the other minority groups,” he recalls. “I matured in the OMA&D.” Irigon said he and fellow Filipino students weren’t prepared to succeed in college but the OMA&D helped give him the exposure to higher learning that he needed. Irigon, a retired social worker, was the first Asian American elected to ASUW office. Former Husky football star Carver Gayton, ’60, ’72, ’76, now director of Seattle’s new Northwest African American Museum, was recruited to be the University’s first African American assistant football coach. He went on to serve as the UW’s first director of affirmative action, setting goals and timetables for minorities in faculty and staff positions. “Initially, there was a lot of push back but we just had to keep going, keep moving ahead, and we kept the pressure on,” he says. New university programs and institutions were being created to help minority students develop and succeed academically once they got
to campus. At the same time, African American students were reaching out to students of color and to economically disadvantaged whites in communities throughout Washington. This activity laid the foundation for today’s Ambassadors program to increase the numbers of academically unrepresented students at the UW. Erasmo Gamboa, ’70, ’73, ’85, professor of American ethnic studies, was a community college student in Sunnyside in central Washington when a group of African American students visited the area on a recruitment tour. Gamboa heard their message, applied and was accepted as a UW student. Until then he had never been west of the Cascades. “A lot of us had very narrow horizons,” he explains. The Special Education Program with its new cultural center and theater were a lifeline for Gamboa and other Latinos. They used the African American experience to organize their own Latino organization on campus patterned after the BSU. “The early days were about getting access for students, “ Lange says. “But now we’re also concerned with bringing diverse perspectives to solve broader social problems and forming partnerships in the community and with academic departments within the University.” —Julie Garner is a Seattle-area free-lance writer whose last piece for Viewpoints was on Go-Map.
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Salazar / Chula Vis ta Media
Focus on: celebrating 40 years of diversity
Photo by Antonio
From struggling to shining: Erasmo Gamboa’s story When a handful of African American students from the University of Washington traveled to the Yakima Valley to recruit minority students in 1968, they couldn’t have come at a better time. At the time, Erasmo Gamboa, a child of Mexiorganize the first UW Chapter of MEChA (Movcan immigrant parents, was a student at Yakima imiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán, Chicano Valley Community College. “Things were not Student Movement of Aztlán), an organization going well,” recalled the son of farmworkers that promotes Chicano unity and empowerwho moved a lot to follow the harvests. “It was ment through education and political action. the same environment as high school. I didn’t It wasn’t long before Gamboa made the feel I was accomplishing much.” transition from a young man treading water in Already under the spell of civil rights changes a small town to his new role as a student activduring the Kennedy years, Gamboa was electriist. He became chairperson of the University fied by the message from the African American boycott committee supporting the United Farm UW students. So he quit community college Workers’ boycott of non-union grapes. and applied to the UW, where he was accepted The solidarity and support of a very close for the upcoming fall quarter. group of Latino activists forming a community Gamboa’s trip to Seattle to check out the and working for change allowed Gamboa to campus was his first trip over the mountains, go forward with both his activism and his and his first trip to the city. “The campus was academics. deserted, but when I came back in the fall for Gamboa, ’70, ’73, ’85, earned three degrees there were more students going in and out from the UW and has been a member of the of the HUB than there were people in my UW faculty since 1978. The author of several hometown,” he says. “I had a sense of extreme books about the history of Latinos in the Pacific cultural dislocation.” Gamboa was among 30 Northwest, in 2007 he was presented the UW’s Latino students recruited by the UW African Outstanding Public Service Award for his work American students. serving underprivileged communities. What helped Gamboa succeed in the transi“I think there’s an obligation to give back,” tion to the UW was being with other Latinos on he says. “The people that I serve, they mirror campus and working for change. He helped my background. I don’t have to be reminded of my commitment.” – Julie Garner
Focus on: celebrating 40 years of diversity Fast Facts about the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity • Collaborates with many local school districts and community partners for an educational pathway for 10,000 middle- and high-school students to plan for their futures in college. • Serves 4,200 undergraduate students with mentoring, instructional support, academic advising, new student orientation, and financial and scholarship needs. • Works with student organizations and clubs that offer professional networking, build leadership skills and celebrate cultural diversity.
Erasmo Gamboa (far right) attends a 1970 protest in Seattle.
The University of Washington is a far different place today than it was in 1968, when students protested the lack of diversity on campus. Today, the UW is recognized as a national leader in serving the needs of students of color and those from underrepresented communities. Today, the University offers a variety of programs for its many diverse communities. They include: • Disability resources for students • An academic minor in diversity and a major in American Indian Studies • GO-MAP, the Graduate Opportunities and Minority Achievement Program
• Helps more than 200 students prepare for, apply and succeed in graduate and professional programs.
Ethnic/Racial Distribution of UW Student Enrollment
Then and Now in the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity
1968
Now
UW Office of Special Education Budget was $60,000 Staff of 10
The UW served 260 minority and economically disadvantaged students
(Autumn 2007)
Undergraduate Enrollment
Graduate Enrollment
(Total: 28,570)
(Total: 11,648)
• African American 3.2% • Filipino 2.7% • Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.6% • Latino 4.9% • International 3.8% • Native American 1.3% • Asian 22.8% • White 51.4% • Not Indicated 9.3%
• African American 2.6% • Filipino 0.9% • Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.4% • Latino 3.5% • International 13.6% • Native American 0.9% • Asian 9.2% • White 58.2% • Not Indicated 10.7%
NAME
(Est. 1968)
Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity
BUDGET
Budget tops $30 million (07-09)
STAFF
Staff of 104 permanent staff members and 234 temporary/ student employees
STUDENTS The UW served 4,244 EOP students (Asian 992, Black 650, Caucasian 565, Filipino 563, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 125, Latino 1,010, Native American 258, Not Indicated 81) (Fall 2007)
Social Justice documentary wins award “In Pursuit of Social Justice,” a UWTV documentary film about the early years of diversity at the University of Washington, received a silver Telly Award at the 28th Annual Telly Awards. The Telly Awards honors the best local, regional and cable television programs and commercials, as well as non-broadcast video productions. More than 14,000 entries from 50 states and five continents entered.
• The Q Center, which provides resources and programs for LGBTQI students • The UWAA Multicultural Alumni Partnership (MAP) • Diversity Research Institute
Timeline of Diversity at UW Student protest leads to creation of Special Education Program (forerunner of OMA) under Professor Charles Evans to recruit and provide academic advising
Office of Special Education is renamed and Samuel Kelly is appointed the first Vice President of Minority Affairs First FEOP Banquet held First annual spring Powwow Black Studies and Chicano Studies EOP Counseling, held programs established Ethnic Cultural Center, United Mexican American Students formed; a year later renamed MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán)
1968/69
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Instructional Center and Recruitment added Friends of EOP community fund-raising group formed
1970
1971
Dr. Herman Lujan appointed Vice President in June
Dr. Ewaugh Fields appointed Vice President in February
TRIO programs (1983 Upward Bound, 1987 Talent Search and 1976 Student Support Services) established
1977
1978
Dr. Myron Apilado appointed VP in August
Hopwood Decision makes it illegal for Texas public colleges and universities to use race as a consideration in admissions and financial aid distribution. In response, the UW merged the EOP admissions program with the Undergraduate Admissions program to create one admissions stream for all freshman and transfer applicants
President’s Minority Community Advisory Committee and 1995 Multicultural Alumni Partnership, Native American Advisory Board established
In Washington, Initiative 200 eliminates the use of race, gender, and national origin in admission, public education services, employment and contracting in all state institutions
1990
1996
1997
1998
Dr. Robert Pozos appointed Vice President in November
1988
The UW develops an aggressive campaign to minimize the impact of I-200. Funding allocated to increase recruitment efforts and outreach to communities of color across the state Expansion of pre-college programs to include GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs)
1999
Dr. Nancy “Rusty” Barceló is appointed the 6th Vice President for Minority Affairs
University Diversity Council founded to serve as a conduit for campuswide assessment and solutions about diversity
The title Vice Provost for Diversity and responsibility for institutional diversity were added to the role of the Vice President for Minority Affairs. This change expanded OMA&D’s view to include all areas of diversity— student, faculty and staff diversity, curriculum, research, outreach, climate— as intertwined and interdependent
2001
2002
Diversity Scholarship Program initiated with funding from Costco and other donors to support the highest achieving minority students in the state
UW Diversity Research Institute created
Dr. Sheila Edwards Lange is appointed the 7th Vice President for OMA&D
UW Diversity Appraisal conducted
Luis Fraga is appointed first Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement Chesca Ward is appointed as the UW’s First Human Resources Staff Diversity Specialist
2003
2006
2007
2008 viewpoints
360° View: DIVERSITY FROM EVERY ANGLE 1
Milestones
People in the News
Former Husky basketball star Brandon Roy is the UW’s new spokesman for the Students First program. Roy, who plays for the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers, is taking classes to finish his bachelor’s degree. In the fall, the UW began offering a bachelor’s degree in American Indian Studies. About 40 students are completing their bachelor’s degrees in American Ethnic Studies with an emphasis in American Indian Studies. Karen Koehler, ’82, 1 became the first woman of color to be elected president of the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association. An adjunct professor at UW’s School of Law, she encourages Asian American lawyers to become active in the civil justice field. Terry Maresca, a member of the Mohawk tribe who is a clinical assistant professor of family medicine at the UW, has been named the director of UW School of Medicine’s Native American Center for Excellence. She is the former president of the Association of American Indian Physicians. Rodney G. Moore, ’87, 2 was elected president of the National Bar Association for 20082009. The National Bar Association is historically known for representing African American members who are lawyers, judges, law professors, and students. Moore practices law in Atlanta. The Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery has received the painting, “The Return to Aztlán,” 3 from Alfredo Arreguin, ’67, ’69. The Smithsonian has another of Arreguin’s works, his 1992 oil painting, “Sueño (Dream: Eve Before Adam).”
Ron Chew, ’02, received the William O. Douglas Award from the American Civil Liberties Union in November. Chew stepped down after serving as executive director of Seattle’s Wing Luke Asian Art Museum since 1991. Richard Ladner, Boeing Professor in the Department of Computer Science & Engineering, was named to the board of Gallaudet University, the country’s only university for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. He is fluent in American Sign Language and a former visiting faculty member at Gallaudet. Tomoko Moriguchi Matsuno, ’69, became Uwajimaya Asian Food Company’s new chief executive, replacing her older brother, Tomio Moriguchi, ’61, who stepped down after 40 years. Mary Pugh, a member of the UW Minority Community Advisory Council and CEO of Seattle-based Pugh Capital Management, was honored when her company was named a recipient of a 2007 Safeco Minority Best Business Practices Award. Pugh Capital Management is the 13th largest African American owned asset management firm in the nation. The Judge Warren and Nobie Chan Education Center at South Seattle Community College opened in January. It is one of three major structures 3 4 to open at the Seattle Chinese Garden, one of the largest Chinese gardens outside of China. The center is named in honor of Warren Chan, ’49, ’50, and his wife, Nobie Chan, ’68, ’72, 4 who donated $100,000 to the project. Malik Davis, ’94, has joined the UW Alumni Association as the associate director for constituent relations. Davis, who served as a public relations and client liaison for a Seattle construction company before joining the alumni association, oversees the UWAA’s program that works with UW colleges, schools, campuses, and other units.
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UW Bothell
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UW Bothell Chancellor Kenyon Chan 5 was honored in December at the Top Contributors to the Asian Community banquet organized by the Northwest Asian Weekly and Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation.
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Museum opening is a dream come true A long-held dream of Seattle’s African American community came true in March when the old Colman Elementary School in South Seattle came back to life with the opening of the Northwest African American Museum, headed by Carver Gayton, ’60, ’72, ’76. The museum opened March 16 with an exhibition entitled, “Jacob Lawrence and James Washington Jr.: Making a Life, Creating a World,” featuring the work and lives of two artists who profoundly shaped our region’s cultural landscape. “It is our hope that our community will regard the Northwest African American Museum as their institutional Griot,” Gayton said, referring to a cultural figure common across West Africa as a storyteller. The idea for an African American Museum to be housed in Colman School was first proposed in 1981. The project got a key boost in 2003 when the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle purchased the school building from the Seattle School District.
UW Bothell will launch a Master of Arts in Cultural Studies in Fall 2008. The program is the first in the Pacific Northwest and one of a very few programs nationally to partner the interdisciplinary study of art and culture with a community-based learning network. Within the past year, UW Bothell has seen the creation of a plethora of new student organizations reflecting the growing diversity and student population on the campus. The new groups include the Hispanic Business Student Association, Journalists for Human Rights, Students for Choice and the Center for Guineoequadorian Studies.
UW Tacoma Gov. Chris Gregoire, ’71, has appointed Marian Harris, assistant professor of social work, to serve on the state Commission on African American Affairs. UW Tacoma offers a two-credit service-learning course, “Introduction to Educational Equity and College Access,” to students who also serve as mentors in the UWT Student Team for Empowerment and Personal Success (STEPS) College Access Program. This program targets first-generation college students, pairing current UWT students with TRIO high school students for one-on-one mentorship. UW Tacoma Chancellor Patricia Spakes and Associate Professor Carolyn West joined TV star and activist Bill Cosby at the “Call Out with Bill Cosby” event in Lakewood in November. The event was aimed at helping youth and families accept personal responsibility, as well as understand the value of education and good parenting. Cosby has held similar events in about 20 cities.
in memory Willard Bill, ’78, a former UW faculty member and recipient of a 1995 MAP Distinguished Alumnus Award, died December 26. A member of the Muckleshoot Tribe, Bill worked in the UW’s Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity’s EOP Program and was on the faculty of the UW College of Education for 10 years. He was 69. Timothy M. Brown, ’99, ’02, a Yakama tribe member and UW doctoral student who helped create the Yakama portion of the “Our Lives: Contemporary Life and Identities”
exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, died September 15. He received the UW Graduate School’s prestigious GO-MAP Stroum Endowed Minority Fellowship in 2006-07. He was 35. Gwen Hall, ’79, founder of Sojourner Truth Unity Fellowship Church on Beacon Hill, died August 24. She founded Sojourner Truth in 1995 as a welcoming place for African American gays and victims of AIDS. She was 56. William K. Hosokawa, ’37, a journalist whose career included editing a newspaper while he was held in a World War II relocation camp, died November 9. He spent 38 years at the Denver Post, taught
at four universities and received many awards for his journalism and advocacy for Japanese Americans. Natalie Kay Lang, ‘97, UW Bothell Admissions and International Student Adviser, died December 23. She advised the UW Bothell Intercultural Club and organized UW Bothell’s annual Intercultural Night. She also helped raise funds for the International Student Scholarship for UW Bothell Students. In her honor, the scholarship has been renamed as the Natalie Kay Lang International Student Scholarship.
Edward A. Russell Jr., ’74, a longtime community volunteer and the husband of longtime UW lecturer and diversity advocate Millie Russell, ’80, ’86, ’88, died December 21. He was known for his activism on behalf of human rights, civil rights and community issues. He was 80. Zakiya Stewart, a former UW student who served as vice president for student services at Shoreline Community College, died July 22. She was 60.
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faces: richard Jones
faces: Rita Zawaideh However, due to the unstable education job market in the 1970s, he decided to pursue a career in law. After earning his bachelor’s degree at Seattle University, he came to the UW for law school. After earning his law degree from the UW, he served as a deputy prosecutor for King County, staff attorney for the Port of Seattle, an associate in the Seattle law firm of Bogle & Gates and six years as an assistant U.S. attorney. In 1994, he was appointed as a King County Superior Court judge, where he oversaw many high-profile criminal cases.
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But none was more sensational than the trial of Gary Leon Ridgway, known as the notorious “Green River Killer” who terrorized Western Washington for two decades. In 2003, Ridgway confessed to murdering 48 women over a 20-year span. Though that case was closed nearly five years ago, Jones is continually reminded of its impact. During a recent trip to the store, for example, he ran into the mother of one of the victims.
raphed nty judge. He was photog en he served as a King Cou wh l tria ay gw Rid n Leo , presided over the Gary Judge Richard Jones, ’75 2007 by Karen Orders. Seattle on December 13, in in the U.S. Courthouse
Where dignity and respect set the scales of justice By JeanNette Tarcha Growing up in a blue-collar family in Seattle, Richard Jones, ’75, spent many nights watching his parents return home exhausted from a hard day of physical labor so they could provide a better life for their family. “They instilled (in me) the benefits of working hard,” says Jones, the son of a carpenter and a maid, and the newest federal judge appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. 12 viewpoints
One of the most respected judges in the judicial system, Jones, a 1975 graduate of the UW School of Law, was serving as a King County Superior Court judge when he was nominated by President Bush last March for a seat on the federal court. The Senate confirmed his appointment in October. But Jones—whose brother is music legend Quincy Jones—didn’t always aspire to become a judge. Originally, he wanted a career in education.
Overcome with emotion, she was only able to get two words out of her mouth: “Thank you.” “I just put my arms around her,” says Jones, whose sensitivity and dignity in handling difficult cases is known throughout legal and community circles. During the wrenching Ridgway case, Jones—who is involved in many community and civic activities—saw his role as the case’s presiding judge was to “bring closure to the families and the community.” Jeannette Tarcha is a former Viewpoints staff writer.
AT A GLANCE
Alumni of color on the bench Richard Jones, ’75, became the eighth University of Washington alumnus of color to serve on the federal bench or the state appellate courts when he was named to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. The others: • Ronald E. Cox, ’73, Chief Presiding Judge, Washington State Court of Appeals, 1994-present. • Jerome Farris, ’58, Judge, U.S. District Court, Western Washington District, Ninth Circuit, 1979- present. • Kenneth H. Kato, ’71, ’75, Chief Judge, Washington State Court of Appeals, Division III, 1997-present. •
Linda Lau, ’70, Judge, Washington State Court of Appeals, District I, 2007-present. She is the first Asian American woman to sit on any state appellate court in Washington.
• Ricardo S. Martinez, ’75, ’80, Judge, U.S. District Court, Western Washington District, Ninth Circuit, 2004-present. •
Charles Z. Smith, ’55, Justice, Washington State Supreme Court, 1988-2002. He was the first person of color to serve Washington as a municipal judge, superior court judge and Supreme Court justice.
•
Jack Tanner, ’55, Judge, U.S. District Court, Western Washington District, Ninth Circuit, 1978-2006. He died in 2006. He was the first African American federal judge west of the Mississippi.
Source: UW School of Law
Rita Zawaideh, ’75, shows off a Syrian wedding dress from the 1800s. The 17th century solid silver headpiece on the mannequin is from Bethlehem, and the necklace is a 17th-century piece from Yemen. She was photographed in Seattle on December 27, 2007 by Karen Orders.
Giving the Arab American community a voice By Amy Huang When you enter the Caravan-Serai Tours office in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood, you’ll notice that the cozy office is plastered with newspaper articles, certificates and awards recognizing Rita Zawaideh’s dedication to community service, social justice, and efforts on behalf of Seattle’s Arab American community. Not only does Zawaideh, ’75, own the travel agency—which is renowned for its educational trips to the Middle East—she also serves as the chair of the Seattle-based Arab American Coalition, which has played a vital role for the local Arab American community, particularly since September 11. Recognized by Conde Nast Traveler magazine as one of “the greatest travel specialists on Earth” for her company’s firsthand knowledge of the Middle East and North Africa, Zawaideh has also been honored by the Seattle Police Department, El Centro de la Raza and the
Seattle Arab community for her contributions to the Arab American community and her work preserving its culture and heritage. “We do a lot of educational work,” says Zawaideh, whose community coalition also offers a 24-hour hotline for Arab Americans in need of social, political or economic help. “We educate people within our community about the new laws passed since September 11. We also work with people outside our community to teach them about our community such as Islam and Arabs in general.” Zawaideh plans to open a Middle Eastern museum in Seattle to showcase many of the items she has collected from her years of traveling. “Travel is all about education,” she explains. “And education is about keeping an open mind.” Amy Huang was the Viewpoints student intern during fall 2007.
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spotlight: UW MENTOR PROGRAM
Dave Gandara, ’90, a UW Alumni Association board member, is serving as the career mentor to Catherine Rose Bugayong (left), a junior who last fall was a student mentor to Michelle Jaquish, an incoming EOP student.
Mentoring makes the difference for OMA&D students By Courtney Acitelli When Bianca Smoker decided to attend the University of Washington, she was excited to see an invitation from the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity offering her the opportunity to sign up for a student mentor. Freshmen and transfer students who qualify— mostly underrepresented minorities and firstgeneration college students—can ask for a student mentor in the fall to help them navigate their first quarter. “Being from New Mexico, I wanted to establish a support system,” says Smoker, a Latina. On this day, she and her OMA&D mentor, junior Kayla Lemley, are meeting for lunch in the HUB. “I have called Kayla so many times,” Smoker says. “Having a mentor makes the little things easier, like registration, links to classes. She knows things I might not even think about.” Says Lemley, a first-generation college student: “I like giving her my perspective—watching her not make the mistakes I made.” 14 viewpoints
Lemley is looking forward to the next step in her mentorship experience—as an OMA&D mentor during the fall quarter, she is eligible to be paired with a UW Alumni Association career mentor during winter quarter. This program, co-sponsored by OMA&D and the UW Alumni Association, is flourishing in its 19th year. New OMA&D students can request a mentor during fall quarter. In winter quarter, student mentors are offered a career mentor through the alumni association. Nearly 300 students
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“I have been mentored in a way that inspires me to do the same for others.”
That gift is readily apparent when Smoker is asked how she thinks she will fare during her first college exam week. Before she can reply, Lemley, her mentor, jumps in. “I already know,” Lemley says, grinning. “She’s going to rock it.” Courtney Acitelli is a Viewpoints staff writer. She is also the UWAA’s assistant director for student and alumni programs.
AT A GLANCE UW Mentor Program by the numbers For the past 19 years, the UW Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity has teamed up with the UW Alumni Association to provide mentors to Educational Opportunity Program students, as well as provide career mentors to students who served as mentors to incoming EOP students. Here’s a look at the numbers:
19 Number of years of OMA&D–UWAA Mentor Program 4,241 Total number of OMA&D students (under- and upperclassmen, plus transfers) in Autumn 2007 100 Percentage of incoming OMA&D students who request a mentor that receive one
Source: Linda Ando, UW Mentor Program coordinator
a view from the UWaa president
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hen I was a sophomore at the University of Washington in 1972, I needed to take calculus to get into business school. But calculus had me so baffled, I wondered if college was for me. Fortunately, the UW offered a tutoring program for students of color. There, I met a tutor who turned my college life around. Not only did she help me with calculus, she put me on the path to becoming an excellent student in all of my classes. Because of her help, I went on to attend law school, work for a judge and a Fortune 500 company. Today, I am proud to say that I work for the President of the United States. I am one of many students of color over the years who have benefited from the UW’s Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity. And I am particularly proud that this issue of Viewpoints pays tribute to the life-changing programs the UW put in place 40 years ago to help thousands of students like me. The changes that occurred here 40 years ago were monumental but they have opened the door for everyone. As an alumnus, I am so proud of this university and where we have come. I am even more proud of where we are going. Norm Proctor, ‘74, ‘77 UWAA President, 2007-08
April 2 – May 30, 2008
Black Panthers Photo Exhibit “The Black Panthers: Making Sense of History” Odegaard Undergraduate Library Regular building hours
April 11–13, 2008
37th Annual First Nations at UW Spring Powwow Bank of America Arena, Hec Edmundson Pavilion Contact: 206-543-1929 or fnuw@u.washington.edu
April 19, 2008
Luau 2008 5 p.m., HUB Ballroom Contact: ohana@u.washington.edu
April 23, 2008
The Samuel E. Kelly Lecture Speaker: Dr. Joy Williamson, Associate Professor of Education 6 p.m., Henry Art Gallery Contact: cpromad@u.washington.edu, 206-685-0518
April 24, 2008
“From Ethnics to Ethics: Theatrical Facilitation in the Balkans & Middle East” 6:30 p.m., UW Bothell, North Creek Events Center Contact: 206-543-3920 “When Words Were Not Enough” Panel discussion related to Black Panther Photo Exhibit 7 p.m., Henry Art Gallery Contact: Maurice@u.washington.edu, 206-616-5296 Cultural Remix Student Diversity Celebration Many Voices, Different Roots, One Remix 11 a.m.-3 p.m., HUB Lawn Contact: mailek@u.washington.edu, 206-947-0637
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APRIL–MAY
participate, with about 50 student mentors continuing on with a career mentor in the winter. Linda Ando, an OMA&D Mentor Program coordinator & EOP counselor for the past 11 years, knows why the program is so powerful. “In a mentoring situation, both parties are the student and the teacher,” she says. Don Gallagher, UWAA’s associate director for career services, adds another perspective. “This program allows alumni to do what they’re most interested in doing. We hear so often from alumni that helping students is the most rewarding volunteer opportunity, and career is a natural fit. This is the one program where it happens in an in-depth way.” Suzette Puente, ’00, who will be Lemley’s career mentor this winter, is entering her sixth year as a career mentor. “As a woman of color,” she says, “I have been mentored in a way that inspires me to do the same for others.”
Mrs. Ume Somkin from the Cayuse Tribe (above) on view in “Peoples of the Plateau” at the Burke Museum. Photo by Lee Moorhouse.
April 26, 2008
calendar
Photo by Mary Levin
campus datebook
Plateau Native Arts Celebration 10 a.m., Burke Museum Contact: 206-543-5590
May 7, 2008
38th Annual FEOP Celebration Presented by Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity and Friends of the Educational Opportunity Program. 5:30 p.m., HUB Ballroom Contact: Sharon Walker, uweop@u.washington.edu, 206-543-1959
May 18, 2008
“The Long Journey Home: Honoring UW Nikkei Students of 1941-42” 2 p.m., Kane Hall Contact: 206-543-0540
May 20, 2008
Community Celebration of Diversity Community Celebration of Diversity Join us as we commemorate 40 years of diversity at the UW. 12 p.m., Red Square Contact: cpromad@u.washington.edu, 206-685-051
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1968 Black Student Union to be honored by FEOP The 1968 Black Student Union, which led the protest that eventually led to the creation of the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity at the University of Washington, will receive the prestigious Charles E. Odegaard Award at the 38th annual Celebration, put on by the Friends of the Educational Opportunity Program and the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity. Celebration, which began in 1971, is a signature awards and honors event to highlight the academic success of UW students. In addition, it brings community activists and pioneers for diversity together.
The 2008 Celebration will be held May 7 in the HUB Ballroom on the campus of UW Seattle. The highlight of the evening includes the awarding of the Educational Opportunity Program Scholarship Awards and the presentation of the Odegaard Award. The Odegaard Award was established in 1973 to honor an individual or group whose leadership sustains former UW President Charles Odegaard’s work on behalf of diversity at the University of Washington and the citizens of the state. It is regarded as the highest achievement in diversity at the UW.
1968 Black Student Union University of Washington Royal Alley-Barnes Cheryl Braxton Emanuel James Brisker Jr. Richard Brown Tony Buford Jesus (Jesse) Crowder, Eddie Demmings Gordon DeWitty Aaron Dixon Larry Gossett Marci Hall-McMurthrie Kathy Halley William (Billie) Jackson Frances Johnson William Daniel Keith Verlaine Keith
Carmelita Laducer-Adkins Lee Leavy Sarah Lee Charlotte McAllister Tom McAllister Carl Miller Garry Owens Emile Pitre Kathy Russell William Stinson Eddie Walker Lyn Ware Anthony Ware Booker T. Williams Sylvia Young
38th Annual FEOP Celebration Date: May 7, 2008 Time: 5:30-8 p.m. Where: HUB Ballroom, UW Seattle Tickets: $80 For more information, e-mail uweop@u.washington.edu or call Sharon Walker at 206-543-1959.
1415 N.E. 45th street, Seattle, WA 98105