The WUmester initiative, started in 2019, is intended to foster a University-wide conversation on a diversity-related topic that will change each spring semester. The goal of the program is to engage the entire Washburn community in a cross-disciplinary learning experience on timely subjects and help students see the connections between the subjects they study in the classroom and real-world debates and problems. It is also intended to highlight Washburn as a place of knowledge in the community and region. We hope to establish WUmester as a signature Washburn program.
The selected topic for spring 2020 WUmester is Citizenship and Suffrage. The selection of this topic is inspired by the fact that 2020 is an election year in the United States. It is also the 150th anniversary of the 15th Amendment, which gave African American men the right to vote, as well as the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment that extended voting rights to women. It is also a census year, a year when the Constitution requires every resident of the nation to be counted for the purposes of allocating representation in Congress and billions of dollars in federal funds to local communities. In light of these anniversaries and events, WUmester 2020 will examine who belongs to this and other nations, who has historically belonged, and what belonging - and not belonging - means.
The Need
Your Day of Giving support to WUmester will be used to create awards for outstanding student work related to WUmester and faculty innovation in incorporating WUmester topics into teaching, as well as to enhance WUmester programming and events. Such contributions will significantly contribute to the WUmester program, helping to energize it and sustain it into the future.
