Division of Inclusive Excellence Quarterly Updates

The Division of Inclusive Excellence continues its work to move the needle on diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility and anti-racism. Earlier this week, the division hosted the Biannual Conference for LADO, a professional organization of Liberal Arts Diversity Officers. Equity-focused higher education professionals from Kenyon, Haverford, Sarah Lawrence and several other liberal arts institutions participated. Last week, the division hosted the Third Annual Inclusive Excellence Awards and Recognition Ceremony. The lunchtime banquet was well attended and awards were handed out for inclusive excellence in teaching, leadership and service. 

The division continues to work with individual departments on their DEIA Maturity Matrix work (learn more). As part of our work to address accessibility and ableism, we have teamed up with the Northwest ADA Center to coordinate a series of webinars related to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The first webinar is scheduled for this Friday at noon, with two more webinars in the following weeks focused on different ADA-related topics. Additionally, we have continued our practice of making the Association for Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) webinars available to the entire campus community. Since the last update, we also hosted a webinar on neurodiversity with Landmark College. Landmark College is an accredited institution designed for students who learn differently, and their Assistant Director of Professional Development, Emily Helft, provided a substantive webinar on neurodiversity for the Whitman community. We have also recently formed a Digital Accessibility Working Group that will convene regularly during the 2025–2026 academic year to ensure Whitman compliance with the August 2026 deadline for digital accessibility in higher education.

The division received a “Meeting the Moment” grant from the Council of Independent Colleges to defray the costs associated with our recent Know Your Rights workshops with Colectiva Legal del Pueblo. Back in February, Yohana Lara-Aguilar and Whitman alum Alan Ayala came to campus to provide informational workshops in English and Spanish to address community concerns. 

The division is preparing its next delegation for the NCORE conference. NCORE, the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in American Higher Education, is the preeminent professional development space and immersive educational experience for topics related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Beyond race and ethnicity, NCORE workshops and keynotes address the full range of issues and topics related to understanding and addressing identity-based oppression and marginalization in higher education. For the last three years, the division has coordinated and sponsored a small delegation from Whitman to attend the conference and we recently organized a convening of all of the delegates from previous years. During a recent NCORE Delegates Reunion event, Whitman participants had the opportunity to reflect on their experiences from NCORE 2024, 2023 and 2022, discuss potential future collaborations, and share insights with some of this year’s delegates. 

As part of the Third Space Speaker Series, the Division of Inclusive Excellence was able to bring noted activist, advocate and astronaut Amanda Nguyen to campus, just one week following the release of their best-selling memoir.

Also in February, the division coordinated the college’s first PossePlus Retreat. More than 50 members of the Whitman community participated in a 3-day retreat in the Tri-Cities with our inaugural cohort of Posse Chicago scholars. The theme for this year’s retreat was Resilience, Connection and Joy. Attendees participated in a number of different community building activities, spent time getting to know one another across difference, and established connections that would carry over to campus. Led by a professional facilitator and organized in collaboration with the Division of Inclusive Excellence and the Posse staff, the retreat provided a space for vulnerability, acceptance and the cultivation of beloved community.

The division continues to review, share and collect data related to the campus climate. Earlier this year, we organized a formal summary of the results from our administration of the HEDS Diversity and Equity survey for staff. Charles Blaich and Kathy Wise from the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium (HEDS), provided a detailed summary of our climate survey results. A recording of their presentation can be accessed using this link. We have also been discussing the results of the National Assessment of Collegiate Campus Climates (NACCC) Faculty Survey, which is designed to assess the faculty experience of the campus racial climate. The student version of the NACCC is opening this month, and we will begin collecting student data. 

The division is preparing for the departure of two members of the team. As many may be aware, the Director of the Glover Alston Intercultural Center, Tebraie Banda-Johns, announced his plans to separate from the institution and will be with us through May 16. Our longstanding Interfaith Chaplain, Adam Kirtley, will also be leaving Whitman at the end of this semester. Each of these team members have made meaningful contributions to the Whitman community. Over the next several weeks, please take a moment to reach out to these individuals and share your appreciation for them and their work. The search for the next Director of the Glover Alston Intercultural Center is underway and we will provide updates on the status of the Interfaith Chaplain role once they get solidified.

Identity and Belonging

The team in Identity and Belonging curated a vibrant series of programs and cultural gatherings during the spring semester that centered the lived experiences, needs and aspirations of Whitman students. Guided by our principles of inclusive excellence, each area worked collaboratively with students and other members of the Whitman community to offer different programs and experiences that foster belonging, facilitate education, express community care and co-create liberatory space. 

Third Space Center

Lunar New Year Celebration - Jan. 29
The Third Space Center collaborated with China @ Whitman to host a joyful Lunar New Year celebration rooted in cultural honoring and community connection. The event opened with a student-led presentation on the history and significance of the holiday, grounding participants in an understanding of Lunar New Year traditions across Chinese communities and the diaspora. In a spirit of abundance and reciprocity, ceremonial red envelopes were gifted to attendees—honoring a beloved custom that symbolizes good fortune and shared blessings. Together, we welcomed the Year of the Snake in a space marked by laughter, storytelling and intergenerational dialogue.

Fry Bread with Sky - Jan. 31
Just days after the Lunar New Year celebration, the Third Space Center partnered with student leader Sky Smith to host Fry Bread With Sky—a community gathering designed specifically to uplift and center Native student experiences. Students, staff and faculty came together to share a fry bread dinner while streaming footage from Powwows held in Indigenous communities across the continent.

Black Voices Project - Feb. 12–22
In celebration of Black History Month, the Third Space Center partnered with the Black Student Union and Women of Color Voices to launch the Black Voices Project—a curated series of programs uplifting Black identity, creativity, and leadership across multiple dimensions of experience.

• Black Voices Faculty/Staff Panel - Feb 12
  This intergenerational panel brought together Dr. John Johnson, Dean Kazi Joshua, and visiting professor of art Robin North in a rich conversation about Black identity, leadership, and navigating predominantly white academic and professional environments. The discussion held space for reflection on the complexities of Black joy, resistance and legacy. Following the panel, students and panelists gathered for a dinner at the Third Space Center, where deeper connections and conversations unfolded in a more intimate, communal setting.
• Anyla McDonald Presentation - Feb 21
  The Black Voices Project featured local author Anyla McDonald, who shared insights from her project, “Raised by Sound: Black Life and the Ecological Imagination.” Her presentation explored how Black communities use sound, memory and storytelling as practices of resistance, healing and cultural preservation.
• Nourish & Flourish Your Hair - Feb. 22
  In collaboration with Women of Color Voices, this full-day event centered Black and Brown folks' hair care as an embodied form of self-love and cultural practice. The program included a DIY oil-blending station, take-home hair-care kits, and a hands-on workshop led by professional hair braider Latifah Lyney. Latifah’s live demonstrations on braiding, protective styling, and hair wellness created an affirming environment where students could reconnect with their heritage, care for their bodies, and build community through shared experience.

Spring Break Series: Mar. 20 & Mar. 27
Understanding that campus breaks can be isolating for students of color and for first-gen, low-income, or international students—the Third Space Center launched a Spring Break Series to offer care, connection, and comfort during a traditionally quiet time on campus.

• Crafts & Curry with Calliope - Mar. 20
  This spring break event featured a home-cooked Japanese curry (Kare Raisu) prepared by Calliope, a student leader and Third Space/FGWC assistant. Students gathered over bowls of warm food while painting, coloring, crocheting and chatting. The event encouraged rest through creativity and offered a space for reflection and play outside of the demands of academic life.
• Pot Roast & Chill - Mar. 27
  The spring break event involved a hearty dinner of pot roast, mashed potatoes and baked asparagus in the Third Space Center. Students engaged with board games and a relaxation station, which included face masks and sensory items. These offerings encouraged students to unwind and reimagine rest as a radical act of self-preservation.

Community Reimagined Speaker Series - Mar. 31
Students gathered at the Third Space Center for a virtual talk delivered by featured guest, Dalila Paredes. Paredes serves as the Dean of STEM at Shoreline Community College and delivered a presentation entitled, Unapologetically Me: Thriving as a Queer, Indigenous Latina in STEM. Dean Paredes shared her journey navigating—and reshaping—the landscape of STEM education as a first-generation, queer, Mexican-Indigenous Latina.

LGBTQIA+ Student Services 

Safer Sex Valentines Tabling - Feb. 13
LGBTQIA+ Student Services staff tabled in Cleveland Commons to provide safer sex supplies to students and get students talking about sex education and safer sex practices that are often omitted in heteronormative sex ed curriculum. Staff created Valentine's cards in the style of “conversation hearts” with a queer twist and attached dental dams, external condoms, internal condoms and lubricant. Giveaways also included cards from RVCC, stickers and candy. Students were invited to take anything they wanted, they just had to answer a queer sex ed trivia question. 

A-Spec-tacular Movie Night - Feb. 14
In partnership with the Lavender House, LGBTQIA+ Student Services hosted a double feature movie night to provide students with a space on Valentine’s Day to be in community and in a space that was not centered on romantic and/or sexual relationships. Ten students were in attendance at the Lavender House for this event, mirroring the success of an ace/aro focused event in the Fall. 

Queer Conversations Series - Monthly
Queer Conversations is a dialogue-based series of educational workshops addressing issues impacting queer communities as well as niche topics within queer communities. These workshops are intended to enhance students’ literacy around nuanced topics related to gender and sexuality, engage students in their own knowledge making, and empower students as experts in their own lives and experiences. 

• “Queer Advocacy & Activism at Whitman & Beyond” - Feb. 19
  The first workshop in this series focused on historic and modern approaches to activism and advocacy in queer communities. Students learned about historic queer collegiate organizing such as the first gay student group, The Student Homophile League, and college students’ roles in HIV/AIDS activism. Students then participated in an inventory of their skills and interests and mapped them onto roles in a “Social Change Ecosystem”, and worked together on fictional scenarios to strategize effective action.
• “Geographies of Belonging: Reclaiming Space & Mapping Identity” - Mar. 10
  The second queer conversation looked at the practice of countermapping as a liberatory tool. Students discussed how maps shape our perceptions about the world or certain locations, and how marginalized communities can be left out of the stories conventional maps tell. Students then created their own queer countermaps of Whitman’s campus. Eight students were in attendance. 

LGBTQ&A - Multiple Dates
Director of LGBTQIA+ Student Services Shelby Hearn, coordinated visits to Lyman Hall, Jewett Hall, Lavender House and a humanities division faculty meeting to field questions and address concerns related to executive orders and policy changes at the federal level that impact transgender individuals. Shelby went over the specific executive orders and their impact on policies, as well as the different lawsuits contesting these orders and how those have played out. They answered questions about access to gender affirming healthcare and impacts on both domestic and international students’ documentation, and shared local resources for anyone with legal concerns. 

The Gender Lab - Mar. 31
As a part of Transgender Day of Visibility, LGBTQIA+ Student Services hosted “The Gender Lab” as a space for anyone and everyone to experiment and play with gender. We offered multiple stations of activities for students to engage with including collaging or sculpting ones idealized gender form, creating bold looks in the Drag Closet, learning make up from Cosmic Drag Collective, exploring the utility of labels in a game, and taking fun and silly photos in a photobooth together. 

TransVerse - Weekly
This spring, LGBTQIA+ Student Services began hosting a new weekly program called TransVerse. TransVerse is a space centering transgender, nonbinary, genderqueer and gender expansive identities and experiences. Folks are invited to attend to find community, try on new names or pronouns, and/or discuss all things related to gender. The very first TransVerse event had about ten students attend. 

LGBTQIA+ Student Services unveiled a Study n’ Sip program this semester as a standing invitation to students to come to the Queer Resource Center and study or relax and de-stress. Reminders were sent out via listservs and over social media. Participation rates have been low, so the office is exploring alternative approaches to low-stakes programming in the QRC.

Religious and Spiritual Life

On Holocaust Remembrance Day in late January, Religious and Spiritual Life hosted the annual memorial event which was a luncheon featuring Barbara Adler West (virtually) who told the harrowing story of her father’s escape from Nazi persecution through the Kindertransport.

Early March saw the start of the Christian season of Lent, and Rev. Ann Marie Illsley of Walla Walla’s First Congregational Church was invited to campus on Ash Wednesday to dispense ashes and remind followers of their mortality and the promise of new hope with Easter’s arrival.  March was also exceptionally busy for Whitman’s robust Muslim Community as they observed Ramadan. Religious and Spiritual Life assisted students from the Muslim Student Association in the coordination of weekly trips to the Tri-CIties Mosque where they worshiped and prayed with the thriving Muslim community in Richland. 

Buddhist teacher Genjo Roshi was on campus in early April to deliver a talk about the Buddhist concept of the 8-Fold Path. This well-attended program was organized in partnership with Walla Walla’s Dharma Sangha.  

Glover Alston Intercultural Center (GAIC)

MLK Jr. Day of Celebration, Legacy Walk & Community Service (January)
On Monday January 20th, the GAIC coordinated the annual MLK Jr. Day of Celebration in collaboration with the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, the Career and Community Engagement Center, and Walla Walla University’s Center for Humanitarian Engagement. Dr. Jace Saplan, the Senior Director of Identity and Belonging at Whitman, delivered a keynote address at the Gesa Power House Theatre. 

‘My Own Normal’ Film Screening (February)
In collaboration with the student affinity group, DISCO (Disability and Difference Community), the GAIC organized and sponsored a film screening trip to the Gesa Power House Theatre. The film, “My Own Normal", highlighted filmmaker Alexander Freeman who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at the age of two, and their journey in the triumphs and struggles of being in a loving relationship and having a family of his own.

‘Wicked’ Watch Party (March)
On March 13, the Director of the Glover Alston Intercultural Center organized a film screening of the blockbuster movie, “Wicked.” While the GAIC remains closed due to ongoing construction, the event was held in the Third Space Center. Attendees enjoyed snacks and engaged in vibrant discussion about the social justice themes embedded in the story.

Equity and Compliance

The Office of Equity and Compliance delivered eight targeted Title IX training sessions for faculty, staff, student leaders and incoming transfer students this spring. A total of 19 reports of identity-based discrimination and harassment have been received since the start of the 2025 calendar year. The bulk of those reports (17) are related to sex/gender-based discrimination or harassment (Title IX). These reports are in various stages of processing and resolution. In addition to Title IX reports, there have been two bias incidents reported since January. One incident alleged race-based bias, and another was concerning shared ancestry-related bias. Each case received by the Office of Equity and Compliance is unique in its complexity and appropriate response. The Director of Equity and Compliance utilizes a range of different approaches and supportive measures, in consultation with the complainant, to address each report. Resolution tactics include counseling referrals, academic adjustments, enhanced security protocols and facilitated no-contact arrangements. These interventions were developed in close coordination with Student Affairs, Human Resources, Academic Affairs and the YWCA Sexual Assault Victim Advocate.

The campus leadership team for the Culture of Respect initiative has continued its efforts this semester and is actively working to review and strengthen campus policies, provide stakeholder education, and enhance bias response protocols.