Cascadia College values the rich diversity of our students, staff, and faculty and
strives to meaningfully include all of the campus community in collectively building
a college rooted in equity, social justice, and centering our most vulnerable populations.
Moreover, Cascadia prioritizes substantive change over symbolic gestures of solidarity
for all of the historically marginalized members of our campus community. Equity &
Inclusion at Cascadia is a collective responsibility shared by the entire campus;
it is a both an end goal and continual process.
A welcoming, equitable, and inclusive physical space and environment that promotes
strong social connections and encourages students to be social change agents
Christian Paige, an Emmy nominated poet, an educator and a passionate community advocate
from Tacoma will be the guest speaker. For the last decade, Christian has dedicated
himself to eliminating barriers for students in education. As a writer, Paige believes
in the responsibility to speak truth to power and to creatively challenge broken ideologies.
He believes one of the most important pieces of his identity is his community, his
love for it fuels him, inspires him and reminds him of his responsibility to move
the world through spoken word and tell the truth at all cost.
“They will forget what you said, they will forget what you did, but they will never
forget how you made them feel.” - Maya Angelou
Policy
Cascadia champions meaningful representation of all people’s identities and diverse
backgrounds on campus and advocates for consequential inclusion in hiring, decision
making, and leadership at all levels. Cascadia maintains that equity and inclusion
are institutional priorities and are demonstrated by:
the hiring and retention of qualified individuals in classified, exempt, and faculty
positions that represent diverse communities;
engaging in proactive outreach and retention efforts to students who represent diverse
communities;
continuing to develop, provide, and support courses that create significant learning
experiences around equity, diversity, and power through active learning, critical
thinking, communication, and interaction.
allocating relevant and appropriate resources for the implementation of this policy;
being culturally responsive, sensitive, and cognizant of Cascadia’s diversity in campus-wide
communications;
providing on-going professional development and learning opportunities regarding equity
and inclusion topics;
including an intersectional lens during the decision-making process that affects different
segments of the campus community;
conducting annual assessments of Cascadia’s equity and inclusion goals;
providing constructive accountability in order to advance the equity and inclusion
goals at Cascadia; and,
engaging in the continual work to eliminate institutional barriers based on biological
sex, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, national
origin, citizenship, socioeconomic status, age, military and veteran status, disability,
language, culture, and religious beliefs.
Inclusive Campus Pledge
On January 17th, 2017, President Eric Murray and UW Bothell Chancellor Wolf Yeigh
signed a pledge to be an inclusive and hate-free campus.
News
July 26th was the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA is the foundation for disability rights. Institutions can no longer ignore
the issue of access and there are now federal protections in place for individuals
for anyone facing discrimination because of their ability.
Support at Cascadia
Individuals and groups have particular needs. The following programs, places, and
services are to support students at Cascadia:
NEWWashington COVID-19 Immigrant Relief Fund - specific to Washington State immigrants to help support those who aren’t eligible
for federal financial relief or unemployment insurance