Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging Initiatives

 

dei-onepage-image.png
One of William & Mary’s core values is belonging. As we strive to create a welcoming and caring community that supports diverse perspectives, we are embracing initiatives and programs that build unity, raise awareness, offer vital resources and set us on a path toward a more just future.

Promoting Inclusive Excellence

The university and our community as a whole have answered the call to move beyond words and take action to accelerate positive change at William & Mary. Current initiatives include:

Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging Matter

We work collectively to ensure that William & Mary is a place where all faculty, students, staff and alumni feel supported and their different perspectives are affirmed. Through diversity, inclusion & belonging initiatives, we can

  • Enhance the student experience — Diversity fuels innovation and brings a broad range of perspectives together to solve challenging problems and promote resiliency for all
  • Foster compassion & positive connections — By providing an environment that embraces and respects  individual strengths and teaches empathy and collaboration, all can flourish
  • Deepen understanding & communication — Encouraging civil discourse around difficult topics and  contrasting viewpoints is key to educating students who have an authentic appreciation for differences
  • Strengthen W&M’s academic excellence — As a leading university, we are called to educate the next generation of change agents. W&M’s complex history and academic excellence position it well to lead Virginia and the nation in addressing social injustices

Your Support Makes a Difference

Your gift will provide critical, immediate support for key diversity, inclusion & belonging initiatives and programs. Current funding priorities across the university fall into four categories:

Student Diversity & Support: to enhance the success of students both in and out of the classroom and to create a climate on campus that is inclusive and welcoming to all students. Center for Student Diversity (1946)

Lemon Project: to contribute to and encourage scholarship on the more than 300-year relationship between African Americans and W&M. Lemon Project Fund (3527)

Faculty/Research Support (including lecture series): to fund training, outreach, programs and research that work toward a more inclusive university community. Diversity & Inclusion Fund (3980)

Affinity Inclusion & Engagement: to provide support and education about a wide array of topics between individuals of diverse backgrounds and identities to build understanding, civility and respect across differences.

Giving Opportunities

* - Indicates an endowed fund.

To build upon existing efforts, the university aspires to create the following:

  • An endowed lecture series.
  • An innovation fund.
  • Faculty fellowships
  • Staff diversity initiatives

To learn more or support these efforts, please contact:

  •  Suzanne M. Armstrong, '93, Assistant Vice President of Development, Campus Initiatives
  •  757-221-7647
  •   smarmstrong@wm.edu