Dear Members of the Campus Community,
As a university community committed to social justice and inclusion, and founded by what is now The United Methodist Church, we are deeply concerned about the global church’s decision at its special 2019 General Conference to exclude the full participation of LGBTQ+ people in the life of the church. A strong statement denouncing this decision was made by the General Secretary earlier this week.
I write today to affirm in the strongest possible terms Puget Sound’s unwavering commitment to welcome and respect the inherent dignity of all persons who live, learn, and work here on campus and beyond.
Puget Sound maintains an affiliation with the church based on shared values that include access to education, academic freedom, social justice, environmental stewardship, interfaith dialogue, and global focus. In addition to these shared values, we have many reasons to be proud of our Methodist heritage, including our student members of the campus club UMeth, our Methodist-appointed campus chaplain, and the many ways that these and other members of our campus community contribute to the spiritual life and wellbeing of the campus community as a whole.
This is a challenging time for the international church and its clearly divided membership. With the conference only recently concluded it is difficult to know what the future will bring. Meanwhile, we will continue our work to build a more just and inclusive world, and hold fast to our commitment to civil rights and social justice for all.
Additional information is available at the links included in this message. Please know that I am grateful for the presence of each and every one of you, and all that you do to fulfill our mission and enrich our campus community.
Isiaah
Isiaah Crawford, Ph.D. | President