IF STUDENT Council Diversity Initiatives chair Ryan McElveen has his way, students in the entering class of 2011 will be deprived of the education they anticipate receiving from the University. Faculty members will be censured as to what they teach, and the nation will be robbed of one of its top educational institutions. McElveen is advocating the adoption of his "Curriculum De-Westernization Plan of Action."If this dangerous plan to eliminate a true liberal arts education is implemented, the University will take the lead in the politically correct trend towards "de-Westernizing" education, but this is a lead that students, faculty, administrators and alumni ought to oppose vehemently.
What is "de-Westernization?" McElveen never clearly defines it. However, he gives us a glimpse of what this "de-Westernized" education would offer students, including programs for African languages, a Queer Studies major and minor and more race-theory based classes. The emphasis of the University would no longer be on studying natural history, moral philosophy or mathematics, as Mr. Jefferson envisioned. Some students currently choose not to pursue a pure liberal arts education, but with McElveen's plan, students would no longer have this choice.
McElveen is not just proposing new classes and departments. What he is advocating is far more problematic. McElveen essentially wants to put every course at the University on the stand and evaluate each course according to his "Curriculum De-Westernization Plan of Action." With this plan, each department chair would select one student to serve on a diversity initiatives ad-hoc subcommittee with the purpose of effectuating a more global curriculum.
Imagine this plan in action, with "Western Civilization" on the stand first. Obviously, this class would not meet the demands of "de-Westernization," so this small, select group of students would then have two choices. One, eliminate the class. Two, "de-Westernize" the class.
How would the subcommittee "de-Westernize" a class called "Western Civilization?" I can just imagine it: The Age of Enlightenment would be replaced by the "Age of Oppression," focusing on how the theories and inventions of the West oppressed people in the third-world. Students would no longer read Rousseau's political writings but would instead be forced to read daily journals from oppressed women of the age. Students would no longer be taught about the amazing accomplishments of Western Civilization, including our own American government.
This plan is not one of reform, but of revolution.
McElveen states two fallacious reasons why we need to "de-Westernize" the curriculum at the University.
First, he said that the University needs to offer a more global curriculum to compete with other institutions. A quick search of the University's Course Offering Directory shows that the University already offers courses that cover the globe including, "History of Southern Africa," "Elementary Arabic," "Imperial China 1000-1900," "Comparative Politics of the Middle East," "Modern Brazil" and "East Asian Women: portrayals in society." Furthermore, students are currently required to take a "Non-Western Perspective" course. There is no requirement to take any "Western Perspective" course or a course on the United States. Neither American history, nor American politics is required. A student can graduate from the University without taking any courses strictly on Western civilization. The University offers a global curriculum and is consistently ranked as one of the top public universities in the country. We are competing. This is no justification. Creating a more global curriculum is not an honest justification for this "de-Westernization" movement.
Student Council's ulterior motive shines through in a comment made by McElveen in The Cavalier Daily news story covering this plan. He said, "Our problem is conservatives aren't taking [race theory-based courses] because it's not coordinated with their viewpoints" There it is. Please read this again: "Our problem is conservatives aren't taking [race theory-based courses] because it's not coordinated with their viewpoints."
The purpose of this "de-Westernization" plan is to turn one of the top educational institutions in the country into a left-wing propaganda machine where students are no longer taught how to think, but instead what to think. It is a deliberate attempt to reeducate conservatives. Although the Student Council committee that is advocating this proposal may call itself the "Diversity Initiatives" committee, its proposal is a way to stamp out true intellectual diversity.
We must stand strong in opposition to this "Curriculum De-Westernization Plan of Action." We are facing difficult times. These are times that call for us to evaluate who we are as individuals, communities and descendants of Western civilization. We must not relinquish ourselves from our past but instead learn from it. And we must not surrender Western civilization on the battlefield or in the classroom.
Karin Agness is a first-year Law student. She is the founder and national president of the Network of Enlightened Women.
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