Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

ATLAS is — first and foremost — a community, and a strong commitment to this community is at the heart of our continued success. We are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive learning, teaching, research and working environment for all students, faculty, staff and guests. The diversity of our community is essential to our success as an institute for radical creativity and invention. This includes diversity at every level of teaching, learning and research. ATLAS particularly welcomes applications to our academic programs from students who would broaden the diversity — in every dimension—of our undergraduate and graduate community.  

We recognize that our work in teaching, research, creative work and scholarship, and service and community partnerships takes place in a social context that has a long history of injustice and inequity.  Through our work we can contribute to addressing societal injustice and inequities, and we are committed to doing so.  

The commitment is not new for ATLAS.  For many years the Roser ATLAS Center was the home of the National Center for Women and Information Technology; our Social Impact Master’s track (formerly Information and Communication Technology) prepares students for careers in applying technology to address social inequities; and several recent PhD dissertations have focused on technology, diversity and inclusion. Our speaker series, colloquia, and B2 Black Box Experimental Studio performances all have made—and continue to make—inclusion and diversity a top priority.

We are happy that our academic programs have attracted a student body that is more diverse in race and ethnicity than the campus as a whole, and that more than 50% of our students and our faculty identify as female or non-binary, which is unusual among engineering programs. We are pleased that campus surveys have shown the ATLAS Institute climate to be positive and respectful of individuals.  And we know that we can do more. Our 2025 strategic plan sets goals to:

• maintain and further develop our positive social and professional climate. 

• foster a more demographically diverse ATLAS community that better reflects the diversity of the United States population.

• establish greater clarity in faculty roles, fostering professional development and leadership for instructors and tenure-track faculty members. 

Learn more about the University of Colorado Boulder Diversity Initiative.

Learn more about The Broadening Opportunities through Leadership and Diversity (BOLD) Center (CEAS)