DEIA Cultivation Grants Announcement

The Division of Inclusive Excellence welcomes applications for DEIA Cultivation Grants. These seed grants are designed to support projects, programs and events that advance diversity, equity, inclusion and/or antiracism (DEIA) at the college. Any member of the Whitman community can apply for a DEIA Cultivation Grant, although community members with access to their own funding are encouraged to utilize those existing funds rather than apply for grant funding. Preference is given to projects that are innovative and enhance (rather than duplicate) existing college practices.

Proposals that center the needs of historically marginalized communities, improve the campus racial climate or collaborative applications with co-leads from different constituency groups (e.g. staff and students) are also preferred. Awards are capped at $3,000 and only a modest amount can be used to compensate the program organizer. You can find the DEIA Cultivation Grant application form here. Applications are currently being accepted and the submission window for this semester will close on Friday, Nov. 22. For more information regarding the application process, contact diversity@whitman.edu.

Examples of projects supported by Cultivation Grants are below:

1. Los Ojos de Whitman
   Mariana Ruiz-Gonzalez, Assistant Professor of Hispanic Studies, Alondra Quintero ’25, Maura Kelly ’26 and Nicole Martinez Cespedes ’26
   Grant amount: $2,000
   Grant used to print physical copies of Los Ojos de Whitman, the only Spanish literary and art magazine on our campus. The magazine is written and designed by Spanish bilingual students from different backgrounds, although we encourage the participation of Latinx and international students.
   
   
2. Journey to Justice
   Grant recipients: Ava Brenkman ’25, Sofia DeFanti ’27 and Abigael Carron, Field Manager for Semester in the West
   Grant amount: $3,000
   Grant used to fund a year-long initiative focused on community engagement, specifically targeting individuals from diverse backgrounds who have been impacted by the justice system. By fostering open conversations, the project aimed to generate awareness, provide education, and catalyze action addressing the systemic issues affecting those within the justice system.
   
   
3. Intergenerational Testimonies from the Oaxacan Diaspora
   Grant recipients: Camilo Lund-Montaño, Assistant Professor of History, and Aaron Aguilar-Ramirez, Associate Professor of Hispanic Studies
   Grant amount: $1,900
   Grant used to support an intensive, multi-day oral history workshop in which Whitman students prepare for and conduct oral history interviews in collaboration with Latinx community partners. A total of six student participants will each conduct an oral history interview with a community partner. With the consent of narrators, recorded interviews will be preserved in the Whitman College and Northwest Archives as a record of the Latinx histories of the Walla Walla Valley.