UM Diversity

The University of Montana values leadership, engagement, diversity, and sustainability, because our institution is committed to respecting, welcoming, encouraging, and celebrating the differences among us.

As members of the University of Montana community, we aspire to:

• Respect the dignity and rights of all persons.
• Practice honesty, trustworthiness, and academic integrity.
• Promote justice, learning, individual success, and service.
• Act as good stewards of institutional resources.
• Respect the natural environment.

Land Acknowledgement

The Séliš-Ql̓ispé Cultural Committee created the language, "The University of Montana acknowledges that we are in the aboriginal territories of the Salish and Kalispel people [ a number of whom are present with us today at this ceremony/event]. Today, we honor the path they have always shown us in caring for this place for the generations to come."

In 2016, Dean DeLuca of the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation agreed to make the statement on the college website and at any public addresses made by the Dean or Associate Dean. The DAC (Diversity Advisory Council) encourages ongoing practice given the positive responses to the acknowledgment at the commencement and other venues. Photos of Salish tipis on the land the University of Montana now occupies are available via the Mansfield Library Archives and Special Collections, which provide a visual representation of the verbal statement.