A note from the
publisher
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Welcome to the fifth
edition of the Diversity Exchange magazine. Our
readership has expanded since our first publication
and we are grateful for your continued interest,
involvement and encouraging responses.
This year we dedicate this edition to the victims
of 9-11, their families and those individuals
who participated in the recovery efforts. Many
lessons on diversity have surfaced in the aftermath
of this tragic event; several of which have been
incorporated in the following readings.
“Now more than ever” is
one message that has emerged repeatedly. That
is, now more than ever we must be resolute in
our commitment to diversity and our push for a
greater understanding and appreciation of differences.
The call to teach diversity has grown louder and
more urgent as a result of 9-11. This tragedy
has ignited a shift in the level of the intensity
with which diverse perspectives are expressed.
If not managed well, the results could have a
long lasting unfavorable effect on the progress
toward a greater understanding among people of
different origins. Rather than moving forward
with a willingness to reduce barriers, we might
easily retreat and build walls of intolerance
and misgivings.
With this emerging call to faculty, staff and
students in communities of higher education, we
have invited many distinguished writers to help
address these issues. The lessons to be learned
are many, and we hope you are inspired to teach
them as you strive to meet the missions of your
respective institutions. Chancellor Gordon Gee
of Vanderbilt University starts us on our journey
by asking us to focus on the why
of diversity and presents several compelling arguments.
Articles following his comments substantiate his
position on diversity such as “Gender Equity
in Intercollegiate Athletics: the Impact of 30
Years of Title IX” by Dr. Judy Blucker;
“A Conversation with Hans Massaquoi”;
“Embracing Diversity” by Robert Coatie;
Max Rothman’s “Aging in a Healthy
Community”; and Aaron Lazare’s “Encounters
with Strangers.”
The Symposium on September 11, 2001 and its
Aftermath section provides us with some thoughtful
writings by authors who reviewed and analyzed
the impact of the tragedy. What is clear is that
it touched everyone’s life. Each article
reminds us that such an extraordinary event forced
us to question and evaluate our perspective on
diversity. It asked us to look at our personal
safety and vulnerability, civil rights and liberties,
transnationality and the effects of terrorism.
As such, Dr. Marilyn Hoder-Salmon’s article,
“Anil’s Ghost and the Attack on America,”
illustrates the power of using literature in assisting
students to communicate their feelings and thoughts
after the tragedy. Dean Leonard Strickman answers
the question for us, “Will basic civil rights
and liberties survive September 11?” Dr.
George Shepeard provides us with an effective
method to assist students with an overwhelming
set of emotions. Dean Ivelaw Griffith broadens
our perspective on the extent to which human tragedy
crossed many boundaries in “Terrorism and
Transnationality.”
In the Classroom attempts to provide
a new form of pedagogy. Dr. Michael Bugeja, in
“Teaching Diversity through Ethics,”
provides a creative method of teaching ethics
in the context of diversity in the classroom.
Dean Doug Wartzok addresses the importance of
increasing diversity among graduate students and
its benefits to an institution and society at
large.
We close with a Final Comment by Dr.
Stephen Fjellman that emphasizes the opportunities
and responsibility we have to educate our students,
“For the Long Haul.” If done well,
we would have a tremendous impact in advancing
our society by preparing our students to value
the exchange of varying ideas through dynamic
discourse, the use of critical thinking, and respect
for others. Now more than ever we
must heed the call! |
