Our Shared Values
You Are Welcome in Our Vibrant Community

Our personal experiences are valued, encouraged, and used in our work and decisionmaking. People see themselves reflected in the community.

• In all of our interactions with each other, we will start from a place of mutual respect, regardless of identities or positionality. We acknowledge that we are all worthy and deserving of our place in this community and welcomed as we are.
• We prioritize creating safer environments where people who choose to are able to be their full authentic selves, especially those with marginalized identities.
• Faculty, students, and staff are able to teach, learn and work in an environment that is free from discrimination, sexual harassment, and other harmful behaviors.

• Learning, using, and correctly pronouncing each other’s names and pronouns when we interact.
• Understanding our own identities (privileged and marginalized) and how they impact others.
• Searching for similarities with others and embracing our differences.
• Doing our own work to educate ourselves on identities that may be unfamiliar to us.
• Recognizing the value of our multitude of backgrounds and experiences and the unique contributions of others.

There is always space to explore your ideas. We trust and support each other in developing them. We are flexible and open to change.

• We are committed to teaching and learning as well as creating environments and new experiences that foster exploration and growth and allow us to imagine a better world for each other.
• We embrace an abundance mindset that acknowledges that different possibilities and courses of action can coexist.

• Celebrating the breadth of expertise at the college.
• Empowering others to express differing opinions and respectfully challenge the status quo.
• Being open to a wide variety of thoughts, ideas, and solutions.
• Recognizing that we are all on our own journeys that may require different levels of support and understanding that others may receive support that we don’t need.
• Viewing failure as a learning experience and trying again.

• We embrace being a positive organization that fosters lifelong relationships with one another, while simultaneously acknowledging that positive communities still make difficult decisions with which we don’t always agree.
• We will respect, assist, validate, and celebrate each other as we build genuine connections academically and socially that will have lasting impact.

• We will work to create collaborative environments and collective experiences that welcome and encourage diverse participation because we know that the end result will be better for it.
• We recognize that good ideas and leadership can come from anyone regardless of position or rank/title.

• Actively seeking people who have different backgrounds and experiences to work with and learn from.
• Creating settings that foster empathetic transparency in our interactions and decision-making.
• Intentionally alternating between leading and following, talking and listening.
• Being dependable and following through on our commitments to one another.
• Trusting others to do their part, even if it is not in the way we would do it.

We regularly review and monitor curriculum to ensure that course material and structures promote inclusive teaching principles, and create a safe learning environment where people feel represented and respected.

Taubman College launched the U-M Public Design Corps (UM-PDC) to fulfill students’ growing desire to make a positive impact in the built environment. Students work in collaboration with nonprofit organizations and community leaders that typically do not have the access or resources for professional design services. In exchange, students get an exponential opportunity to work with real clients in the professional world.

The Equity in Architectural Education Consortium (EAEC) leverages various resources and forms of capital to collectively reduce inequities and disparities for current students of color and other underrepresented groups in undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs of architecture. The EAEC’s shared goal is to ultimately impact the fields and disciplines where our students will take up careers. The EAEC was founded in 2018 by architecture schools, departments, and programs at: Florida International University (FIU), Hampton University, Howard University, Morgan State University (MSU), Tuskegee University, University of Michigan (U-M), University of Oklahoma (OU), and Florida A&M University (FAMU).

The final studio of the B.S. in Architecture degree, the Wallenberg Studio pays tribute to one of our College’s most significant alumni, Raoul Wallenberg. The studio’s main theme revolves around broad humanitarian concerns, which the studio section faculty put forward for exploration annually. Through this course, students delve into the transformative potential of architecture and its impact on people and settlements.

In past years, Taubman College has provided students with travel opportunities during the spring semester, through courses initiated by faculty and in alignment with individual research interests. Moving forward, the college is taking a new approach. Specifically, 5-6 courses will be preselected through a faculty-student review process to tackle significant social and environmental challenges through a culturally critical and justice-oriented lens. This will ensure that the courses are aligned with the college’s values and priorities while also providing students with a more focused and impactful learning experience.

ArcPrep, the University of Michigan’s architecture preparatory program, provides Detroit Public School (DPSCD) juniors with hands-on learning in architecture, urbanism, and studio design. U-M ArcPrep works to broaden career horizons, meet future demand, and bring diverse voices into the fields of architecture, planning, and design by serving students typically underrepresented in American architecture schools and thus the profession of architecture.

ArcStart is our pre-architecture residential program designed to introduce students to the built environment, architectural design principles, and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning. Over the course of the program, high school students will witness how a design education prepares participants to engage the world around them within the context of a rigorous academic setting at a leading design institution.

Taubman College Pathways is one of the multiple pathways and mentoring programs Taubman College offers at every stage, from high school through entry into the profession and beyond.

Something as seemingly straightforward as saying someone’s name out loud, in the way it is intended, shows respect for their culture, background, and experiences.

Knowing and sharing personal pronouns is one of the most basic ways to show respect for another person and help create an inclusive environment where all feel welcome as their authentic selves.

The University of Michigan is located on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe people. In 1817, the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Bodewadmi Nations made the largest single land transfer to the University of Michigan. This was offered ceremonially as a gift through the Treaty at the Foot of the Rapids so their children could be educated. Through these words of acknowledgment, their contemporary and ancestral ties to the land and their contributions to the University are renewed and reaffirmed.

We are a community that celebrates together. Annual student-led gatherings, including Diwali, Lunar New Year, MLK Symposium, Lavender Graduation, and more, spotlight and support our diverse community identities. Our annual North Campus Dean’s Spirit Awards celebrate our community members’ commitment to social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion. We also intentionally support members of our community who choose to engage in religious observances throughout the year.

Additional University Resources