On July 4th in the early evening, Wright Park was alive with families celebrating Independence Day. Kids were everywhere, and for thirty minutes or so I watched them play on a contraption I hadn’t seen before which they told me was called a spinner.  In order to work the spinner, they had to cooperate. There were no posted rules or directions, and indeed, the spinner’s speed depended on how many kids were on it at once, how they were distributed, and their size and weight.  Experiential interdisciplinary learning on display! A kid might, through trial and error, figure out the physics of the situation, but unless he or she convinced the other players to shift their weight in tandem – or better yet – to get some of them to get off and use their bodies to provide an energy source, the understanding would not produce an outcome.  

Over the thirty minutes or so, more than twenty kids, ranging in age from 6 to 12, of every shape and size, and  every ethnic background that makes up Tacoma, combined and recombined on this spinner.  Each new combination required a reworking of the puzzle of momentum.  Some kids were leaders, others mediators; some were free riders, others workhorses. 

These are our future UW Tacoma students.  When they come to us, we must be ready.  They will need us to honor their backgrounds and experiences, provide challenges as complex and compelling as a spinner, demand excellence, and prepare them to make their best contributions to the collective good. 

Our very best work will come when we ground our research and teaching in the issues that compel us and our community, draw upon the wealth of knowledge and experience from the academy and beyond, and engage students.  There are many examples of just this kind of work emanating from UWT faculty.

I invite you – faculty, students, staff, community members, engaged citizens of the State of Washington, fellow academics from all campuses of the UW and beyond – to share in the privilege and responsibility of educating the next generation and addressing the challenges of our local and global communities.

Debra Friedman

Chancellor