Photo: View from behind Anderson Building

To our students,

We write to you today with heavy hearts and a shared sense of fear and uncertainty. The recent attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs across higher education have shaken us. 

What we’re experiencing is not simply a policy disagreement. These are deliberate—and legally questionable—attempts to dismantle the progress we’ve made in creating a more inclusive campus where everyone belongs. We feel the weight of this moment alongside you. Many of you have come to us with tears in your eyes, wondering if there will still be a place for you at this institution. Others have expressed anger at seeing hard-won progress threatened. These emotions are valid and justified and we share them with you.

Despite the external pressures forcing changes upon us, please know this: We stand with you. Though certain programs and initiatives have been altered in name or structure, our commitment to you and to the values of inclusion remains unbroken. The bonds between us—these human connections—cannot be legislated or ordered away. The community we’ve built together is resilient precisely because we co-created it, and it is in this spirit of co-creation that we will forge our path forward.

This moment demands that we use our collective imagination. Together, we must envision and build the future we want to see—one where our values not only survive but flourish in new and powerful ways. Your voices, your ideas, and your leadership are not just welcome in this process—they are essential. Anyone and everyone who wants a safe and equitable future should join us, and we should not give up. To demoralize entire populations is partly the point of these actions. Let’s refuse to be demoralized. 

We don’t have all the answers right now. We won’t pretend that we do. But we commit to creating spaces where we can discover these answers together. And we make these promises:

• We will be transparent about changes as they unfold, and oppose harmful ones methodically and relentlessly;
• We will do all we can to maintain the integrity and structure of our courses and programs;
• We will fight to preserve safe spaces on our campus;
• We will continue to celebrate our diversity, even if it becomes more difficult to do so;
• We will listen to your fears, your anger, and your hopes;
• We will not abandon our values, even as we navigate complex new realities.

For those of you feeling especially vulnerable right now, please reach out. Our doors are open. Our counseling services remain available. Your student organizations continue to have our support. We will persevere with you.

Communities that stand together, that refuse to be divided, that actively co-create alternatives to what has been imposed upon them—these communities not only prevail, they emerge stronger with new possibilities that couldn’t have been imagined before.

In solidarity and with faith in our shared future,

Rosemarie Alexander-Isett, PhD
Adjunct Associate Professor of Communication

Éedaa Heather Burge, PhD
Assistant Professor of Alaska Native Languages

Jessy Goodman, MFA
Writing Specialist

Jeremy Kane, MFA
Professor of Art

Geoff Kirsch, MFA
Term Assistant Professor of English

Kevin Maier, PhD
Professor of English

Boni Parker, MFA
Term Assistant Professor of Art

Judith Dax̱ootsú Ramos, M.A.T.
Assistant Professor, Northwest Coast Arts

James Ryan, PhD
Assistant Professor of Writing and Communication

Xiaofei Song, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Communication

Jay Szczepanski II, MA
Assistant Professor of English

Math Trafton, PhD
Professor of English

X̱’unei Lance Twitchell, Ph.D.
Professor of Alaska Native Languages

Emily Wall, MFA
Professor of English

Liz Zacher, M.F.A.
Associate Professor of Art