Student Council Diversity Initiatives chair Ryan McElveen presented a plan of action to de-Westernize University curriculum at the Student Council meeting last night.
One way that Council plans to do this is to create an ad-hoc Diversity Initiatives subcommittee to determine where the curriculum of each major "is lacking," according to information distributed by McElveen in his "Curriculum De-Westernization Plan of Action." Each department chair will select a student to serve on the subcommittee, and each student will then work with fellow students in the major to propose a more global curriculum.
"We're a Southern institution, and in order to compete with other institutions around the country, we need to offer a global curriculum," said McElveen.
The Diversity Initiatives Committee also plans to put a referendum on this fall's election ballot.
"It's a referendum to gauge student opinion on de-Westernization in general and to show the administration that this has student support," said McElveen.
Other goals for the de-Westernization campaign include programs for African languages, a Queer Studies major and minor and more race-theory based courses.
One problem McElveen highlighted was that minority organizations, such as the Vietnamese Student Association, must use Student Activity Fee funds to teach members their culture's language.
"We have CIOs here teaching their members because the University can't," said McElveen, emphasizing the need for a wider variety of languages to be taught.
Also, McElveen said race theory-based courses already offered at the University need to reach more students, especially conservative students.
"Our problem is conservatives aren't taking that class because it's not coordinated with their viewpoints," he said.
Additionally, a substantial change to College requirements was mentioned in connection with the de-Westernization program. According to McElveen, the Faculty Commission on Academic Affairs is discussing adding a new North American Non-Western Perspectives requirement in addition to the Non-Western Perspective requirement. With this new requirement, students must take a class on diversity in North America, with topics such as race in America.
"It's likely that next year that it will be implemented," McElveen said.
Vice Provost for Academic Programs J. Milton Adams said the idea for the requirement came on the recommendation of the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Equity.
The requirement is something the Arts & Sciences faculty would ultimatley have to approve, said Adams.
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