FOR THE PUBLIC GOOD
2024-29 STRATEGIC PRIORITIES FOR THE UW GRADUATE SCHOOL
BOLD STRATEGIES FOR A BOLD FUTURE
DEAN’S NOTE
Over the next five years, the University of Washington Graduate School has an opportunity to strengthen our mission to nurture and empower the next generation of leaders, researchers and innovators.
When identifying strategic priorities, the Graduate School community considered ideas like our students would, with the willingness to name a problem or opportunity, measure it, build a solution and keep iterating until its right. And that’s where we landed on our four strategic priorities — ones that will lead us with alacrity, transparency and self-reflection as we become stronger leaders of graduate education.
At their core, the priorities are an iteration of our values — partnership & collaboration, continuous learning, inclusive excellence, respect & trust and agility — attributes we apply to our work as well as to our relationships with one another.
We understand the importance of a graduate degree as more than just an academic endeavor. Education deepens human knowledge, but it also opens students’ minds and prepares them for lives of meaning and contribution — to their local communities and to the world more broadly.
Over the next five years, we anticipate there will be challenges as universities around the country address both new and old problems. Despite the challenges we face, we will discover; we will learn; and we will make the world a better place. We look to you — the UW Graduate School community — as key partners as we action our plan. Your talent, effort and passion are a source of strength and can contribute greatly to our priorities by turning plan into action. So, let’s think
creatively, openly and collaboratively towards our shared goal of strengthening graduate education.
Having global impact sounds like a bold promise, but it all starts here, with strategic actions based on values and with a community dedicated to one another and to big ideas.
JOY WILLIAMSON-LOTT Dean of The Graduate School
OUR VISION
WE BELIEVE IN THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF GRADUATE EDUCATION.
At the Graduate School, we champion inclusive excellence across the university, partner with academic units to deliver high quality degree programs and provide direct-to-student support to nurture and empower the next generation of leaders, researchers and innovators.
Partnership & collaboration
> We believe that working together fosters stronger problem-solving, drives innovation and builds authentic community.
Continuous learning
> We support one another with grace and encouragement as we grow both individually and collectively in our roles.
Inclusive excellence
> We seek out and include varied perspectives to achieve our best work, recognizing that diversity drives success.
Respect & trust
> We cultivate a community grounded in openness, clear communication, civility and collegiality.
Agility
> We pivot, adapt and elevate our approaches to proactively support graduate students and enhance graduate education.
TO ADVANCE THE PUBLIC GOOD THROUGH THE POWER OF GRADUATE EDUCATION
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“Building a space for students to thrive in graduate education requires us to not simply commit our energy and resources to academic programming alone. The UW Graduate School drives community building and mentorship and prioritizes innovation and equity across the university to advance student success and their sense of belonging.”
PRIORITY OF FOCUS NO. 1
Provide leadership on the future of graduate education:
WE WILL partner with academic programs to ensure they are responsive to emerging trends in graduate education including new intellectual fields, shifting career outcomes/ workforce requirements, and the evolving needs of students.
PRIORITY ACTIONS:
> WE WILL seed innovation in graduate programs to ensure students receive a highquality educational experience that prepares them for future careers.
> WE WILL engage in regular evaluations of our policies to ensure they are equitable, uphold the integrity of a graduate degree, responsive to shifts in graduate education, and support innovation.
> WE WILL create additional opportunities for direct engagement with academic programs to ensure faculty and staff are supported in their local goals for graduate education.
> WE WILL facilitate the uptake of DEIB practices in academic programs.
> WE WILL increase our engagement with UW Bothell and UW Tacoma to support their graduate education goals.
> WE WILL leverage technology and data to facilitate campus/college/school/program decision-making and innovation.
DR. RALINA JOSEPH Associate Dean for Equity and Justice in Graduate Programs
PRIORITY ACTIONS:
> WE WILL share our expertise and increase our knowledge by participating in national forums and use what we learn there to fuel a cycle of continuous improvement.
> WE WILL elevate outstanding examples of graduate education, graduate students and graduate faculty at the UW.
> WE WILL create a strong and recognizable brand.
> WE WILL increase the frequency and quality of our communication with university-wide partners.
> WE WILL develop, leverage and increase usage of our resources for faculty, staff and students.
> WE WILL build on and/or create deeper partnerships with other student-facing units.
> WE WILL engage with institutions and organizations outside the UW to highlight the value of graduate education.
“To advance graduate education, the Graduate School has a deep network of partners across the university. From graduate program advisors to faculty coordinators to the Office of the University Registrar, we meet students at different touchpoints along their academic journeys. Working together, we can build an ecosystem across all three campuses for student success.”
“JESSE KNAPPENBERGER Director of Graduate Enrollment Management Services
PRIORITY OF FOCUS NO. 2
Increase our visibility on campus, in the community & nationwide:
WE WILL better communicate our expertise, successes, and innovations on graduate education to the UW community, the greater Puget Sound region, and nationally.
PRIORITY OF FOCUS NO. 3
Improve the quality of experience for Graduate School staff:
WE BELIEVE that a healthy and productive culture and climate, where our values infuse all of our work and relationships, promotes better problem-solving, innovation, and professional growth.
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“The Graduate School is home to a passionate and dedicated team. We take pride in contributing to graduate education and supporting students as they advance their knowledge and pursue their goals.”
CHRISTY SHERWOOD Graduate School Director of Human Resources
PRIORITY ACTIONS:
> WE WILL create opportunities and supports for employee growth and development.
> WE WILL develop opportunities to assess our culture, climate and community and develop mechanisms to improve it.
> WE WILL create and provide access to resources and information for staff.
> WE WILL create regular opportunities to seed, nurture, and ensure the Graduate School is living our values.
PRIORITY ACTIONS:
> WE WILL create closer connections to and feedback loops with graduate students to gather their reflections on their experiences and needs.
> WE WILL create and/or refine our student support services including our programming and communications.
> WE WILL partner with academic programs to identify and fill gaps in student support.
> WE WILL grow the number of donors and friends to the Graduate School to increase our ability to support graduate students and graduate education.
“With a tri-campus presence, the Graduate School has a unique opportunity to partner with our Tacoma, Bothell and Seattle campuses to improve graduate education university-wide and meet the individual needs of students and academic programs. Together, we build shared goals and drive innovation, equity and excellence in graduate education.”
“DR. KIMA CARGILL
Graduate School Associate Dean of Academic Affairs
PRIORITY OF FOCUS NO. 4
Improve the quality of experience for graduate students:
WE BELIEVE that attending to the mental, emotional, and financial wellbeing of graduate students is key to their success in graduate school and beyond.
OUR STUDENTS
Creating impact at UW & beyond
UNDERSTANDING AGING FOR LONGER LIVES FINDING PURPOSE OUT OF A STORIED LIFE TRAINING AI TO PROTECT PRIVATE DATA
Dr. Arianna Gómez
Ph.D., Molecular Medicine and Mechanisms of Disease
From a young age, Dr. Arianna Gómez has been interested in science, and to her, it’s also personal. “I’m adopted, and my adopted father had a genetic condition; that’s why I was interested and wanted to help people like him,” Arianna says. She received her Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine and Mechanisms of Disease in March 2022 and is now a post-doctoral fellow at the UW Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. Her research focuses on understanding how genetic changes affect skeletal structures with aging. Ultimately, Arianna aims to identify new targets for therapies and better understand individual risk factors for osteoporosis and orthopedic conditions to help people live longer, healthier lives.
Talena Lachelle Queen
MFA graduate from UW Bothell
As soon as she learned to read, Talena Lachelle Queen knew she wanted to become a writer. The daughter of two teen parents, Talena’s life was not easy. Despite the challenges they faced, Talena’s family believed in her and affirmed her dreams. “...I think young people believe what you tell them about themselves,” Talena says. “They don’t know who they are yet. And so whatever narrative we are giving to young people, they believe that. So, I was fortunate that the narrative my family was giving me was ‘You are beautiful. You are smart. You are talented.’ It was very affirming.” Talena graduated with an MFA from UW Bothell. Now a high school teacher and the poet laureate for her hometown of Paterson, New Jersey, Talena shares her passion for words and a love of learning with her students and community.
Ph.D., computer science at UW Tacoma
During his master’s thesis, Steven Golob created a “membership interference attack”, or an MIA, that challenged the data sets within the synthetic data and found vulnerabilities. “Essentially, synthetic data is about taking private data, anonymizing it, and then publishing that and it can be used to train the AI models,” Steven said. According to Steven, he was originally more interested in building secure systems, rather than breaking someone else’s. “But it is important to do this because we don’t really know how safe these systems are before we use them in production,” he said. Steven’s work has the power to improve global privacy standards and strengthen privacy laws.
Steven Golob