The mission of Occidental College is to provide a gifted and diverse group of students with a total educational experience of the highest quality—one that prepares them for leadership in an increasingly complex, interdependent and pluralistic world.
The distinctive interdisciplinary and multicultural focus of the College's academic program seeks to foster both the fulfillment of individual aspirations and a deeply rooted commitment to the public good.
This mission is anchored by four cornerstones: excellence, equity, community and service. These building blocks, in one form or another, have long been the basis for the College's commitment to providing responsible leaders and citizens for our democratic society. Choosing them to support the future helps to ensure that the College remains true to its mission while adapting to a changing world.
Excellence
The belief that the sine qua non of an Occidental education must be its quality—the unflagging commitment of the College to provide a truly superior academic experience for its students. Excellence in education necessarily means the College will successfully attract superb students as well as talented faculty, administrators and staff. We seek to instill a lifelong love of learning, along with the skills students will need to pursue this love in the years that follow their formal education.
Equity
Respect for and the practice of justice, fairness and integrity—the belief that no attribute such as race, ethnicity, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, age or physical ability should impair anyone's access to or enjoyment of any feature of Occidental College. Thus equity necessarily entails welcoming the presence of all forms of diversity into the pursuit of excellence.
Community
Students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the College all empowered to help create and sustain a campus environment characterized by a spirit of mutual respect and cooperation based upon our common vision and shared values. We share the values of trust, integrity, discipline, selflessness and hard work as we pursue truth and knowledge through education. We endeavor to create an inclusive learning community and a sense of loyalty to that community by providing arenas of discourse for the purpose of achieving understanding and goodwill without demanding consensus or conformity. We believe in maximizing the potential for fulfillment of all members of our community in an environment that fosters intellectual rigor, academic integrity and constructive, well-informed critical thinking.
Service
Service may be the ultimate object of a liberal education. There is no higher purpose in life than committing oneself to helping others.