Chair Talk Vol. 3 - #2

Aug. 17, 2016

Chair Talk Vol. 3 #2                

Inclusive Excellence

Inclusive Excellence is the UA diversity strategic initiative designed to create a welcoming environment for all.  At the core of the university is the undergraduate classroom – particularly for first and second year students.   Facilitating a diverse and inclusive campus starts there. 

Those of you who were here last year know about the Listening Tours and the issues that surfaced in their wake. You also know about the commitments we have made, as an institution, to better live up to stated values around diversity and inclusion. 

The Classroom Experience Subcommittee of the Diversity Task Force is proposing several syllabus changes that address inclusive excellence.  As Chair of that Subcommittee I’m using this Chair Talk to get the message out now, hoping that you will adopt these recommendations starting this semester.  Doing so should be relatively easy, mostly involving syllabus additions or substitutions, while the contribution to inclusive excellence could be quite large.

One syllabus change deals with “content warnings” (the term we prefer to use, instead of the more emotionally charged ‘trigger warnings”).  The point of this change is not to inhibit an instructor’s choice of course materials, but rather to be clear about what those materials include.  A second syllabus change deals with pronoun usage, making use of class rosters to track self-identified pronoun usage.  We are creating additional support materials, which will be available later during the semester

 Specific Syllabus Recommendations

  • Syllabi for courses that include potentially disturbing content should have a tailored “content warning” statement, using the following template:

This course addresses topics including ___, ____, and ____, often leading to valuable discussions on topics such as ____, ____, and ____. Course material includes content that is explicit in its depiction of ___. The instructor will provide advance notice when such materials will be used. Please contact the instructor to discuss any content-related concerns, as alternative materials may be available.  (NOTE: This replaces the “Notification of Objectionable Materials” segment in the current template that many of you have seen.)

  • Syllabi should include an “elective name” and “pronoun usage” statement, to foster a sense of inclusion. The following is suggested:

This course supports elective gender pronoun use and self-identification; rosters indicating such choices will be updated throughout the semester, upon student request.  As the course includes group work and in-class discussion, it is vitally important for us to create an educational environment of inclusion and mutual respect.  (NOTE: You can download your class roster from UAccess)

In addition to these specific syllabus changes, it is strongly recommended that at the first meeting of every course the instructor explicitly commit to establishing and maintaining a classroom climate of respect and open-mindedness and a rejection of intolerance.  This can be reinforced by inserting the following statement in a prominent place in your syllabus:

Inclusive Excellence is a fundamental part of the University of Arizona’s strategic plan and culture. As part of this initiative, the institution embraces and practices diversity and inclusiveness.  These values are expected, respected and welcomed in this course.

We are working on a video for use by instructors, and hope it will be available soon.

I’m guessing we would all like to be at a university that found a positive path forward in dealing with one of society’s toughest problems.  Given a campus that values commitment and collaboration there is a decent chance we can do it.   For faculty it starts in the classroom, and the inclusive climate we create.

Lynn Nadel
Chair of the Faculty