Mission
The U-M Arts Initiative seeks to illuminate and expand human connections, inspire collaborative creativity, and build a more just and equitable world through the arts.
Vision
The U-M Arts Initiative will make the arts central to the University’s identity and mission.
To achieve this, we will expand access to the arts on campus and beyond, activate them in student learning, and integrate the arts into research across disciplines. We will strengthen the arts ecosystem of southeast Michigan while also shaping national and global understandings of how the arts can lead social change.
Goals
Underscoring U-M’s role in the arts ecosystem of the region, the initiative’s core goals include:
- Strengthening the student experience by expanding and integrating the arts in teaching and learning
- Activating interdisciplinary discovery and arts research
- Broadening and deepening partnerships with communities and the public
- Building capacity and sustainability for the arts
Pathways and Projects
We will accomplish this vision by:
- Advocating for the arts as a modality for addressing the most pressing problems of our day.
- Changing the culture at U-M by centering the arts in teaching and learning, research, and community engagement.
- Promoting the state of Michigan's contributions to arts and culture widely, and illustrate its centrality to our national artistic landscape.
- Supporting arts-centered research and creative work that advances the mission of the university.
- Elevating racial equity and social justice in all of our work.
- Integrating arts production, reception, and experiences with the arts more fully and broadly into the undergraduate curriculum.
- Creating interdisciplinary spaces for collaboration and community-building.
- Acting as a leading advocate for the power of the arts regionally, nationally, and globally.
