About Us

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The Simpson Center for the Humanities seeks to advance vital research and spirited intellectual exchange on questions of broad and pressing concern through and across the academic fields of the humanities and the humanistic social sciences. As a research unit within the Humanities Division of the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Washington, the Simpson Center supports scholarship that draws on the core areas of humanistic inquiry and beyond. Both basic and socially-engaged research are central to its mission which is expansive and interlocking:

  • to support crossdisciplinary research
  • to underwrite initiatives at the leading edge of change
  • to offer innovative courses at the graduate level, and
  • to foster work that is public facing, with a priority being the integration of research, teaching, and public scholarship.

Key to the Simpson Center's vision is the development of a culture of collaboration. Multi-year, intellectually ambitious, and socially compelling collaborative projects include “Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History,” “Biological Futures in a Globalized World,” "New Geographies of Feminist Art: China, Asia, and the World," “Women Who Rock,” “Transformative Education Behind Bars,” “Capitalism and Comparative Racialization,” and “Humanitarianisms.” All of these projects integrate research and teaching, and possess a public dimension.

We are currently accepting reservations for Winter and Spring 2024.

 

Our space is for you, the University of Washington campus community. We make our meeting spaces available free of charge for activities that contribute to the intellectual life of the university. We also have access to two larger rooms: a lecture hall and a classroom, which we are authorized to reserve on behalf of projects and events formally supported by Simpson Center funding or co-sponsorship.

Note: Faculty leads of collaborative current projects do not need to use this form, and can contact program & event manager Caitlin Palo directly for all room reservation requests.

First priority goes to Simpson Center projects and activities, second to other scholarly groups related to the humanities, broadly envisioned. When space is available, we welcome other UW and community groups, including reading groups, workshops, seminars, dissertation defenses, and departmental retreats. We ask that you follow our guidelines and leave the space as you found it.

Learn about our rooms and reservation process below. If you’d like, call us first at 206.543.3920 to see if your dates are available. Rooms are not available on weekends or state holidays.

Not sure if you’re eligible? Please ask.

 

Facilities Reservation

To reserve our facilities, submit a room reservation request.

 

Our Spaces

  1. Seminar Room (Communications 202) [Capacity 35]
  2. Reception Room (Communications 204) [Capacity 35]
  3. Meeting Room (Communications 218D) [Capacity 18]

Affiliated Spaces

  1. Lecture Hall (Communications 120) [Capacity 95] - Available at 3:30 pm M-F, after instructional hours.
  2. Classroom (Communications 226) [Capacity 50] - Available at 3:30 pm M-F, after instructional hours.

To request use of the Lecture Hall (CMU 120) or Classroom (CMU 226) for events that are not either co-sponsored by the Simpson Center or part of a currently funded project, please contact UW Event services directly by using their request form.

 

Maps and Directions

We are located on the second floor of the Communications Building on the University of Washington campus at 4109 E Stevens Way NE, Seattle, WA 98195. For directions to our building on campus, view the campus map. For resources on visiting campus, including parking and transportation, we recommend the "Visit the UW" resource page.