What We Do

Our Mission

University Heights Center promotes life-long learning, creativity, culture, community activism, and the preservation of our historic building.

Our Values

We are devoted to…

Arts and culture

Civic involvement
Sustainability
Children in our community
Lifelong education of individuals of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities

We value diverse life experiences and heritages as we foster community, culture, and educational opportunities in the U District and Greater Seattle area to ensure all voices are recognized and heard. As we reside in one of the most historic elementary school buildings in Washington, we strive to preserve and maintain our iconic structure for generations to come.

Diversity, inclusion, and equity are connected to our mission and critical to ensure the well-being of our staff and community. We are dedicated to creating an environment where all employees and volunteers feel valued and respected regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation or identity, education, or disability.
Our staff and board are committed to...
PROVIDING INFORMED, AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP FOR CULTURAL EQUITY
- Acknowledging, challenging, and dismantling systemic inequities within our policies, systems, programs, and services
- Spending time and resources to diversify our board, staff, committee, and advisory body leadership
- Exploring underlying assumptions that interfere with inclusiveness
PROMOTING DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN OUR WORKPLACE
- Including a salary range with all public job descriptions
- Practicing and encouraging transparent communication in all interactions
- Partnering with organizations that are committed to diversity and inclusion efforts to provide resources and offerings to underrepresented populations
- Creating learning opportunities and policies to pursue cultural competency and establish equitable practices
- Hosting and producing programs that foster diverse leadership
- Developing a system for being more aware of bias during hiring, promoting, and evaluating processes
- Advocating for public and private-sector policies that promote diversity, inclusion, and equity
- Gathering quantitative and qualitative data to measure our progress in promoting diversity and inclusion in our workspace