Support Us

Our Mission

From our vantage point on the Pacific rim, the Department of Asian Languages and Literature investigates the vibrant cultures of Asia through literary, linguistic, and textual analysis of their historical roots and contemporary incarnations. Through this exploration we contribute to a factual and nuanced understanding of our common humanity and illuminate connections between East and West. Internationally recognized for excellence in research and teaching, we provide undergraduate students with the cultural competence needed to succeed in a variety of careers, and graduate students with the methodological tools to create original scholarship and advance our knowledge. Through the dissemination of knowledge, we enrich our local, national, and global communities.

Your Support Matters

From student scholarships to faculty research travel to community-focused presentations, many vital departmental activities are sustained and made possible by the generous support of our friends and alums.
Your gifts enable us to carry forward our mission in teaching and research for not only our current faculty and students, but also future generations.

Some of our funds are targeted to specific purposes (for example, undergraduate scholarship support) while others are dedicated to particular programs or specializations (for example, Classical Japanese literature).

You can donate directly through the links provided below. If you prefer to recommend a gift through your Donor Advised Fund (DAF), it's easy to do: follow these instructions.

Friends of Asian Languages Fund

This discretionary fund provides immediate financial support with maximum flexibility. We use this fund for a wide variety of purposes, including addressing the most pressing needs of the department. In addition to supporting the department’s five programs in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, South Asian, and Southeast Asian languages, your gift will also support talks, symposia, colloquia, and other teaching and research activities that serve the university, local, and international communities. Donation info.

The Heineck Endowed Fund also supports all department activities, generating funding in perpetuity.
Donation info.

Asian L&L Student Support Fund

This is our most flexible general fund for supporting students. Your contribution to this fund allows the department to further undergraduate and graduate studies in various ways, including prizes for excellence in scholarship, support for study abroad, and both merit- and need-based financial aid. It will allow us to continue to attract, support, and graduate the best and brightest students in the field today. Donation info.

Funds Supporting Annual Awards

The department honors outstanding students every spring at our annual Convocation and Awards Ceremony. Many of our awards and fellowships are funded through gifts, including endowments. For details on the awards and lists of recipients, see our Awards & Honors page. Your donations to these funds will ensure that we can continue to recognize and honor the achievements of our awardees in a meaningful way.

Program-Specific Support Funds

Endowments

Endowments provide funding in perpetuity. Your gift to an endowment ensures that the goals of the endowment will be realized for future generations as well as current needs. For more on the role of endowments at UW, see this brochure from the College of Arts & Sciences.

Contact Us

If you would like to discuss making a targeted donation to the department, please contact the chair directly at asianllchair@uw.edu or through the main office at 206-543-4996.

You will find links in the box below to seven of our high-priority funds. Thank you for your generosity!

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