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California Institute of the Arts

Equity and Diversity (IDEA)

About the Institute

CalArts is committed to a diverse and equitable environment in the workplace, within the classrooms, studios, and beyond.

Issues of access, equity, and inclusion are indispensable to the vitality of CalArts, where the community constantly strives to deepen intercultural awareness and provide robust support mechanisms for students from increasingly varied cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

Students, faculty, and staff with concerns regarding issues of equity, access, and inclusion at CalArts should address these issues with CalArts’ Institute Diversity Officer (IDO) and Title VI Officer, Eva Graham.

About Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access (IDEA)

CalArts launched the IDEA (Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity and Access) Office to redouble the Institute’s efforts to confront, address, and eradicate the structural, systemic, and societal injustices that are threaded through our communities. This cooperative is led by and housed in the Office of the President. 

Spurred on by the summer of 2020’s social justice movements, our community looked inward to assess CalArts’ role and responsibilities as a leader in the arts and arts education. We began with the full support of the Institute’s entire leadership: The CalArts Trustees authorized up to $300,000 to be used from the Crisis Mitigation Reserve for initial start-up costs, and looked for a clear delineation of the ongoing financial commitment for this work in any future annual budget proposed to them.

The introspection found that for too many talented artists from underrepresented backgrounds, joining the CalArts community—as both students and faculty members—remains too far out of reach. The Institute hasn’t made enough progress in creating a more representational and diverse community of artists in the world, but IDEA will help identify, foster, and spotlight the steps needed to keep building an inclusive, anti-racist community together. The IDEA Office will make these measures and processes more transparent and encourages financial support through grants, philanthropy, and open budgeting via the Institute’s established processes.