Mission of the MSC
The Multicultural Student Center provides support, advocacy, and co-curricular experiences that center, affirm, and celebrate the diverse and intersectional identities of students of color. Our spaces, programs and services are designed to cultivate a sense of belonging and community while strengthening all students’ capacity to learn, lead and thrive.
History of the MSC
The Multicultural Student Center was founded in 1988 to support the academic life of students of color at UW-Madison. For the past 35 years, we have served as a home away from home for students of color, providing spaces, programs and services where diverse and intersectional identities are centered, affirmed and celebrated.
Today, the MSC includes nine staff members and four identity centers: the Black Cultural Center (2017), APIDA Student Center (2019), Latine Cultural Center (2019) and Indigenous Student Center (2021). We are a hub for multicultural student organizations and the convener of campus-wide heritage and history months, as well as yearlong programming that honors our identities and experiences.
Our Land Acknowledgement
The University of Wisconsin – Madison occupies the ancestral home of the Ho-Chunk people, a land called Teejop (day-JOPE). As a land-grant institution, UW-Madison benefits from the forced removal of Indigenous communities, and the colonial policies that sought to eradicate their languages and cultures to assimilate them, the impact and trauma of which are still felt today.
In addition to the Ho-Chunk Nation, the state of Wisconsin is home to these 11 tribal nations: Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Brothertown Indian Nation, Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, Oneida Nation, Forest County Potawatomi, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin, Sokaogon Chippewa Community, Mole Lake Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians.
The MSC supports Indigenous students from across the continent through engaging in contemporary issues, taking a critical eye to current campus complacencies, and as stewards of the Indigenous Student Center (ISC). The ISC works in collaboration with Indigenous student organizations and campus partners to create safe spaces for Indigenous peoples. The relationships cultivated by the ISC through collaboration are intended to build community, which is vital to support Indigenous people and uphold the treaty obligations established by those that came before us. We encourage you to reflect on your positionality in these ongoing issues and engage in uplifting Indigenous voices and Indigenous joy.
Strategic Priorities
- Use of Physical Space
- Increase the Multicultural Center (physical space) usage and community involvement through integrating MSC staff member interaction with students and creating informal social engagement.
- Student Organization Opportunities
- Grow and strengthen student organizations by creating more development opportunities for organizational leaders and through more collaobration between student organizations.
- Skill Building
- Increase knowledge and skills of faculty and staff members to support students of color through coordinated skill-based trainings.
- Increase Engagement
- Increase engagement of historically and currently underserved populations through focused assessment projects and intentional programming.
- Community Building
- Increase community building within and across racial and cultural groups through intergroup dialogue efforts and community programming.
- Improve Reporting of Hate and Bias Incidents
- Improve awareness of hate and bias incidents and promote visibility for current bias reporting processes.