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Section: Opinion

African-American

‘We Will Be Watching’ – Algorithms And African-American Life

During my senior year in high school I developed an interest in pursuing a major related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in college, so I signed up for a section of physics taught by a college professor spending his academic leave at our high school.

February 6, 2019

Community Colleges

In Support of Rural Higher Education, Economic Diversity and Democracy

As a community college, our student body is diverse. It reflects the real world. As part of my first year efforts to see our college through our students’ eyes, at the end of last semester, we held a forum where students shared their thoughts on what started as age diversity on campus. The students communicated how much they treasure what we, educators, see as valuable and a unique advantage afforded to them because they are completing the first two years of their undergraduate degree at a community college.

February 5, 2019

YvesSalomonFernandez

“WELL-thy” New Year Resolutions

For many, the beginning of a new year is a time-honored tradition of fresh starts and new resolutions to change behaviors. Although I typically create a formal New Year’s plan in my professional life, I am much less formal when it comes to plans or resolutions as it relates to my personal life.

January 29, 2019

Spontaneous Synergy Happens in a Diverse Classroom

A kind of magical synergy can break out in a university classroom that is diverse when unlikely circumstances coalesce. Where else would a 21-year-old Pakistani man and a 37-year-old U.S. Army Ranger from Ohio find themselves together in rural southeastern North Carolina?

January 29, 2019

Dr. Judith G. Curtis

African-American

Dr. King Deserves More

We have now entered what I and many other scholars of color call, “The High Season.” It’s that period between Martin Luther King Day, Black History Month and Women’s History Month when we are regularly called upon to lend our scholarly expertise to elementary schools programs, university symposia and community banquets. But, Dr. King deserves more than just annual celebrations. His memory deserves a full time commitment to eradicating poverty, abuses of power, sexism, militarism and yes, racism.

January 28, 2019

Former Prof Gave up Higher Ed for Fed Job Disgusted by Shutdown

Without question, President Donald Trump blinked Friday as he stood alone at the Rose Garden podium.

January 25, 2019

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Learning How to Teach is Important – Even if You Don’t Want to Be Faculty

While not every student intends to teach after completing a terminal degree in education, I would argue that it would be to all students’ benefit to learn how to help others learn effectively. Sure, there are structures in place for graduate students to have experiences being a TA for a course, teaching a course on their own and maybe even earning a teaching certificate; but how are these experiences evaluated?

January 23, 2019

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Asian American Pacific Islander

Cilantro and Prejudice

Cilantro is a good example for showing the stupidity of racial stereotypes. The herb, also known as coriander and Chinese parsley, is a staple in some cuisines to the surprise of diners of varying backgrounds who report it tastes like soap. It turns out that whether you like this seasoning or want to spit it out depends on your genetics — your heritage.

January 22, 2019

FrankWufeatured

‘But You’re Not a Real Doctor!’

Once while traveling to a conference, I used my credit card to check-in to use my frequent flyer benefits. My salutation, Dr. Nichole M. Garcia, prompted the sales associate to ask me if I could provide medical advice for something they were experiencing. As I began to explain that I was not a medical doctor, I was met with, “But you’re not a real doctor, you’re a teacher.”

January 17, 2019

On Being a Professor with Autism, and Traveling the World to Destigmatize It

People on the autism spectrum have similar characteristics no matter their nationality or race. However, there are great differences in societal awareness, acceptance and appreciation of people on the autism spectrum throughout the world.

January 17, 2019

Why is Black Excellence so Important?

Black excellence is more than a catchy hashtag or words written across the front of a hooded sweatshirt. Black excellence is, in fact, our ancestor’s wildest dreams. It is what we as people of African descent strive for each and every day.

January 16, 2019

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Education in Spite of It All: A Black Woman’s Journey

My mother, Dr. Mildred Pratt, died in 2012. I think about her often. She was one of the first-generation of Black women to become a full professor at a predominantly White institution. When she became a full professor in the 1970s, Black women represented 1 percent of all full professors. As of 2016, Black women, like me, represent 2 percent of all full professors. In fact, out of all the full-time faculty in degree-granting postsecondary institutions, Black women only represent 3 percent of all faculty. We need more.

January 15, 2019

Menah Pratt-clarke

African-American

‘Mascu’sectionality: Theorizing an Alternative Framework for Black Males

The theorizing and theoretical frameworks speaking to the male experience, particularly the Black male experience has tended to emanate from a place of deficit thinking and pathology. Hence, for Black males and those who study this population, engaging in critical discourse about their epistemological and ontological being is at best lopsided.

January 15, 2019

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Sorority Life as an Act of Resistance

My expectations of life as a Black, college student in the 90’s were largely shaped by a TV show called “A Different World.” The show was set on the campus of the fictional Hillman College in Virginia. For the first time I saw a group of students on television who looked like me and whose background mirrored my own.

January 14, 2019

Immigrant Identity

As a first-generation Mexican immigrant woman, who stands at just 5 feet tall, I knew navigating academe would be difficult. I immigrated to the United States when I was four years old with my parents and four siblings. Although my parents lacked formal education and had very limited English skills, they knew they had to apply to legalize our status through the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.

January 11, 2019

Asian American Pacific Islander

A Lottery for Harvard and Other Elite Schools?

As we wait for the judge’s decision, one interesting essay has been published in Quartz by Natasha Warikoo, an associate professor of education at Harvard. Warikoo suggests Harvard save time, money and anxiety by running a lottery. That’s right. A lottery.

January 11, 2019

090517_Emil_Guillermo

Don’t Wait – Meditate

The Anxiety and Depression Association of America estimates that 40 million adults age 18 and older suffer from an anxiety disorder. At 18 percent of the nationwide population, medication use is at an all-time high and more people are struggling to cope than ever before. The struggle is arguably more existent in the African-American community.

January 10, 2019

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HBCU Websites Must Adhere to American with Disabilities Act Guidelines

Over the next few years schools that fail to address whether their websites and other tools are consistent with ADA guidelines will encounter additional challenges. This is important considering that HBCUs are traditionally underfunded.

January 7, 2019

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