with Mark Anthony Neal
August 28, 2020
Recent events require conversations with undergraduate and graduate students about race and racism within your department, discipline, and institution. These conversations may be challenging and tense. Some things to consider:
Do you have the knowledge and information you need to effectively initiate and lead these conversations?
How can you engage productively with students who are angry, disappointed, and frustrated with the slow pace of progress?
How can you serve as a bridge between students and faculty colleagues who are overwhelmed by or skeptical of student concerns?
What curricular and programmatic steps can you take in the short and long term to drive positive and sustainable change in your academic unit?
"The amount of time that Black faculty are taken away from their work to help better manage the institution in ways that are often unrequited is just striking. It causes us, in terms of the impact on our productivity, our ability to be able to teach as effectively as we can, in some cases these institutions are literally killing Black faculty because of the kind of energy that we are giving to the institution and our students.”
This workshop featured a presentation by Mark Anthony Neal, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor and Chair of African and African American Studies and Co-Director of the Duke Council on Race and Ethnicity at Duke University. The following case study was also examined and discussed (materials were shared with attendees to read in advance):
A group of students submit a written list of demands calling for racial justice in your department. They demand greater faculty and graduate student diversity, required courses about diversity in the discipline, and mandatory diversity training for all members of the community. As a faculty leader, how do you engage and respond?
Participants learned:
How to listen empathetically and without defensiveness
How to build trust with frustrated students
How to motivate and inspire students
Helpful resources and best practices
Watch a video of the August 28 workshop
Watch a video segment from the August 28 workshop featuring Mark Anthony Neal’s presentation