Adopted March 2025.
The Department of Music and Theatre at Iowa State University places a high priority on the fostering of a positive and supportive environment for all members of the community. We believe that a healthy learning, working, artistic, and social environment begins with community members who feel welcomed, respected, and heard. We recognize that the creation of that environment requires ongoing assessment and attention; and we aim to engage proactively in the work of cultivating a caring and supportive community through mutual trust and respect.
We aim to develop and incorporate strategies for community success, including creating a culture of community-wide dialogue, listening, education, engagement, and action. We commit to creating and maintaining an environment of belonging that extends to all faculty, staff, and students. We will recognize and support the work of all our community members through institutional representation, resources, research, and education; and uphold the core values of the university as stated in the Principles of Community. We commit to the regular review of curricula that ensures the representation of multiple perspectives, including the presentation of musical and theatrical programming across history, culture, and genre.
As a community of artistic experts, we embrace the broad understanding of music and theatre as art forms, as means of communication, and as components of intellectual and cultural heritage. By extension, therefore, we aim to provide a safe environment that embraces all people, fosters curiosity for all stories, and respects the many origins of knowledge, tradition, and culture. This environment and our collective perspectives are fundamentally essential to our work as creators, performers, researchers, and teachers and to the comprehensive education of students in our field. We will strive for each member of our community to have the opportunity to thrive and to take full advantage of the resources afforded by the Iowa State University Department of Music and Theatre.