Community

For the good of every neighbor

We are WashU in St. Louis, for St. Louis, and with St. Louis — in our research, education, patient care, and operations. The interventions we develop at home we will apply at scale across the globe, and our global work will inform practices in our region and in our nation. 

Our community presence must stand on deep engagement and earned trust. There is a momentum to our region along with ongoing challenges. St. Louis brims with creativity and innovation; at the same time our city carries deeply rooted racial inequities. WashU’s history is not uncomplicated: We have done much to advance prospects for our region, and we have also fallen short of our highest ideals. The success of our region is essential to our long-term strength as a university, and we have a leading role to play in the future of our city and state. This role requires that we reflect well the voices of our community. Our employees, students, and local alumni are also members of the region and what we do on our campus, from our operations to efforts to support greater equity, has a meaningful impact on our neighbors in the region. 

Our local efforts are not at the expense of our global work. Initiatives we advance abroad can enhance our partnerships at home. The work we do in places like Puno, Peru, or Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, inform interventions in St. Louis, and we can scale these solutions across the globe. Our profile as a global university better positions us to serve local communities, and our international reputation will grow by what we accomplish as WashU in, for, and with St. Louis.