programs

Equity

A small group of people collaborate on a loom in a community weaving room.

About

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities as we share present perspectives, remember the past, and envision the future through the power of art.

SAM’s commitment to equity is ingrained across all facets of the museum. We are dedicated to racial equity in all that we do. From internships designed to engage with historically underrepresented communities to working with advisory committees on exhibition planning, SAM is actively collaborating with our diverse community to ensure that a wide range of perspectives are represented in both the way the museum works and how the museum serves Seattle and the world.

Advancing racial equity at SAM is everyone’s responsibility. We want to reflect that commitment within the priorities and plans of every element across the institution. We recognize that this work never ends and that we each play a role—including you, our visitors and members—in creating a museum where everyone feels a powerful sense of belonging and can connect with the art and ideas on view.

What to know

Key to SAM’s 2025–2031 strategic plan is transforming the museum to open our doors wider and amplify diverse voices. One of our top priorities for the next six years is to embrace our community by building together with the intention to:

Deepen relationships across diverse communities by listening, co-creating, and reflecting the stories and voices of the people we serve.
Extend our reach far beyond our walls by actively engaging with community members, organizations, civic groups, government, and businesses. This is a reciprocal process: not only inviting our neighbors into the museum, but also building lasting, meaningful relationships through ongoing dialogue and collaboration.
Embrace our leadership role in the Pacific Northwest cultural landscape by driving positive change through generosity, partnership, and shared purpose.
Create welcoming, inclusive, and memorable experiences at every touchpoint—ensuring that every visitor feels seen, valued, and inspired through radical hospitality.

History & purpose

Seattle Art Museum’s racial equity work has been a focus since the mid-1990s with the formation of multiple community advisory groups and organizational partnerships specifically aimed at building relationships with local communities of color. Under the leadership of Sandra Jackson-Dumont, the Deputy Director of Education and Public Programs who was hired in 2007, and Kim Rorschach, who became SAM’s Director and CEO in 2013, many initiatives were formed to further racial equity work at SAM and the seeds of a culture shift were planted.

In 2015, SAM participated in the Turning Commitment into Action racial equity learning cohort facilitated by the City of Seattle Office of Arts & Culture and Office for Civil Rights. This program provided arts and cultural organizations across Seattle the opportunity to examine the ways they could eliminate institutional racism and build racial equity in their organizations. As a result, in 2016 SAM’s Equity Team was formed.

That same year, independent consultants facilitated racial equity training for SAM staff, Board, and volunteers. Based on feedback from the training, the Equity Team created SAM’s racial equity plan, which became integrated into the institution’s strategic plan. Because the goals were institution-wide, departments were required to look at their individual goals and develop action plans for how they could be achieved. Equity was also added to SAM’s core values, specifically referencing racial equity, with the belief that when we start with race and recognize intersectionality, everyone benefits.

In 2020, following the murder of George Floyd, which intensified the Black Lives Matter movement across the country, SAM reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and created the position of Director of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. In addition, an Equity Task Force was formed which became a permanent board committee in 2022.

Equity task force

The goal of this task force was to build on SAM’s commitment to fostering equity and inclusion throughout the museum. Designed as an advisory body composed of members of SAM’s Board, staff, and Education and Community Engagement Committee. The broad membership represents a diverse cross-section of SAM staff and community members so that many perspectives could be brought to the table.

The members of the task force were divided into working groups focused on four critical departments at the museum: Human Resources, Curatorial, Development, and Communications.

Over the course of six months, this group gathered virtually to brainstorm, comb through research, discuss ideas, and ultimately developed a set of recommendations. These are summaries of the expansive, detailed timelines that were generated through this work. Departments are already implementing many of these initiatives as they continue planning and identifying resources for the long term.

Human Resources

Create a more inclusive work environment and increase representation of Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) at SAM through a focus on recruitment, hiring, and retention practices.

Curatorial

Increase BIPOC representation in SAM’s collections, exhibitions, and gallery interpretation; further community collaborations; and expand the scope of programming.

Development

Build inclusive fundraising and membership practices that center trust and authenticity to increase connections with BIPOC audiences.

Communications

Better understand who our current audiences are and identify those communities where we can more effectively engage. Provide strategic guidance to departments across SAM in communicating equity priorities, goals, and progress both internally and externally.

Equity initiatives

Board Equity Committee

This permanent board committee evolved from the 2020 Equity Task Force. The committee is dedicated to providing thought partnership, accountability, strategy building, reports, and support of SAM's strategic plan goal of operationalizing equity work across the museum.

Staff Equity Advisory Committee

With members across all departments at SAM, the Staff Equity Advisory Committee is supporting institutional accountability for strategic plan goals around racial equity. The committee promotes efforts to build a welcoming workplace for all through transparent communication around equity-related work happening within departments across the museum, pooling resources and ideas, supporting projects, and providing experiential learning opportunities for staff that center BIPOC artists and arts and cultural organizations.

Emerging Art Leader Internship

Interdisciplinary Emerging Arts Leader (EAL) internships aim to open career pathways for individuals who bring dynamic backgrounds and perspectives to their work in art, museums, or community engagement. This internship program is intended to engage with historically under-represented groups in the museum field. In 2024, the program expanded to include internships for existing employees to experience working in other areas of the museum.

Hiring practices

SAM strives to attract employees, volunteers, and interns who are passionate, qualified, and offer diverse perspectives by prioritizing equity and inclusion in the workplace. We are interested in engaging with historically under-represented groups in the museum field as we strive to be inclusive and equitable.

Advisory committees

Working with members of our community in the planning of programming and exhibitions is part of SAM’s commitment to equity. It is important that voices and perspectives from across diverse communities are represented in the decisions that SAM makes.

Title I School Subsidies

Full or partial reimbursement for school bus transportation is available on a first-come, first-served basis to Title I schools (40% or more students on a subsidized lunch program). Generally, maximum bus reimbursement is $150 per bus or $300 total per visit.

Accessibility

SAM strives to create an enriching experience for all visitors and provides accessibility options at all of our locations. We are also working to adopt best practices to make digital experiences more accessible for all audiences experiencing art from home or planning a visit to the museum.

Director of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

This position on the museum’s executive team was created in 2020 and designed to help shape the Seattle Art Museum's priorities, partnerships, communications strategies, and audience-engagement efforts to build an equitable, diverse, and inclusive museum. This role builds relationships with key stakeholders in the field, serving as a community liaison and connector.

Community Passes

SAM strives to be an inclusive and welcoming place for everyone. Through strategic community partner organizations, we provide free opportunities to experience the museum to those in our community who have historically faced barriers or been excluded from engaging with museums.