Race Matters: Equity & Action in Higher Education and Beyond

EMU AAUP/Faculty Senate Workshop

“Race Matters: Equity & Action in Higher Education and Beyond”

July 29-30, 2020

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 Day One

9 a.m.-9:20 a.m. — Opening & Introductions (Judith Kullberg & Suzanne Gray)

9:25 a.m.-10:25 a.m. — How Did We Get Here? Race & the Ivory Towers (Aaron Rollins, University of Louisville)

10:30 a.m.- 12 p.m. — When Love and Good Intentions Aren’t Enough:  How Implicit Bias Affects Our Everyday Interactions (Marian Vasser, University of Louisville)

12:00 p.m.-1 p.m. — Systemic Racism and Its Symptoms (Toni Pressley-Sanon)

What is race? What is racism? Most of us think that we understand these terms. In this workshop participants will explore not only these two powerful words, but also the various ways that they show up and impact our daily experiences.

Day Two (EMU Focused)

9:00 a.m.-9:20 a.m. — Where Do We Go from Here: Assessing the Status of Students of Color Across the Campus? (Barbara Patrick)

In 2012, African American accounted for nearly one quarter of EMU’s student population.  However, over the last decade there has been a continual decline in the enrollment and retention of these students.  The current presentation utilizes data from the 2016 Campus Climate Survey and demographic information to offer insight on internal issues that might contribute to the problem. The survey data is further analyzed to capture the views of faculty, staff, and students regarding race, fairness, safety, and other inclusivity issues across the campus. It concludes with current efforts to address these issues.

9:20 a.m.-10:20 a.m. — A Panel Conversations with Students About Race & Inclusion in the Classroom (Aaron Rollins & Marian Vasser)

This student panel is designed as a listening session for EMU faculty and staff to gain access to students of color conversations regarding their experiences with inclusivity issues in the classroom and campus environment. The students will offer insights on positive and negative encounters and EMU’s strengths and weaknesses in addressing diversity issues.

10:30 a.m. -11:20 a.m. — Including Diversity and Inclusion Values in the Praxis of Syllabus Development and Classroom Engagement (Stephen Jefferson)

This workshop will describe findings from the nascent research literature that explores the effects that diversity statements have on the attitudes and behaviors of students and other organizational stakeholders. Additionally, we will discuss why an instructor/faculty member may want to include such a statement in all of their syllabi, as well as some helpful heuristics concerning how to effectively craft and discuss your own diversity statements with students and fellow faculty. Finally, we will review some strategies for having difficult discussions about diversity and inclusion topics in your classroom/department meetings, as well as brainstorming solutions to workshop participants’ concerns related to adding such topics to their curricula.

11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. — Mentoring for Belongingness: Best Practices for Faculty and Undergraduate Student of Color Mentorship (Dyann Logwood and Simone Dixon)

This workshop will highlight the importance of fostering and maintaining mentor relationships between faculty and students as a means of enhancing belongingness, persistence, and community for students of color at EMU. Together, we will begin the conversation on best practices for faculty-student mentorship with students of color including cultivating collaborative relationships, developing skills, values, and networks, and honoring and hearing experiences in order to achieve their own goals.

12:30 p.m.-1 p.m. — Next Steps & Concluding Thoughts (Judith, Suzanne, & Barbara Concluding Thoughts)

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Presenters:

Featured
Marian Vasser
Marian Vasser

Marian Vasser is the Director of the Office for Diversity Education and Inclusive Excellence at the University of Louisville. She conducts workshops and training sessions regarding diversity, inclusion, and equity. She also serves as a consultant for individuals, departments, university leaders, and public sector entities regarding best practices concerning diversity and inclusion.

Dr. Aaron Rollins
Dr. Aaron Rollins

Dr. Aaron Rollins is Associate Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Urban and Public Affairs at the University of Louisville. He also serves as the Director of the Masters of Public Administration Program and Director of the Peace, Justice, & Conflict Transformation Program. His research examines issues pertaining to urban policy, social equity, organizational effectiveness, education policy, and the politics of race.

Dr. Toni Pressley-Sanon
Dr. Toni Pressley-Sanon

Dr. Toni Pressley-Sanon is Associate professor of Africology and African American Studies. She is the author of Istwa Across the Water: Haitian History, Memory, and the Cultural Imagination (Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida, 2017). She teaches courses on intersections of African and African diasporic history and cultural production.

Dr. Barbara Patrick
Dr. Barbara Patrick

Dr. Barbara Patrick is Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Administration. She also serves as the chairperson of the Faculty Senate Task Force on Campus Climate, Race & Diversity and Director of Community Outreach the Public Administration Program. She has published research on issues of fairness and equity in public policy, performance management in public education, and citizen engagement in the administrative process. Her current research includes cultural competency in police engagement, structure and outcome of state Civil Rights Commissions, and financial/economic disparities among underserved cities in Michigan.

Dyann Logwood
Dyann Logwood

Dyann Logwood was the first African-American administrative director of the Women's Resource Center at Eastern Michigan University. She is a poet, writer, activist, and Assistant Professor in the Women's and Gender Studies Department, and also teaches courses in Africology and African American Studies, and Religious Studies.

Dr. Stephen Jefferson
Dr. Stephen Jefferson

Dr. Stephen Jefferson is an Associate Professor of psychology at Eastern Michigan University (EMU). His research interests include exploring how systemic discrimination affects the emotional lives of people of color (particularly African Americans), White Americans, and individuals who identify as belonging to marginalized sexual orientation groups. He is currently the Chair of the College of Arts and Sciences Diversity and Inclusion Committee at EMU.

Matt Oches