Equity

Matthew Lynch published in Diversity, Equity

Want to change perceptions of Muslims? Support students of all beliefs

Matthew Mayhew, New York University

In the wake of the recent terror attacks in Paris, Baghdad and Beirut, our national discourse has been full of conversations about Muslims in civic life.

Presidential candidates have offered up religious tests as potential barriers to entry for refugees seeking to flee conflict zones. State governors have proposed suspending accepting new refugees in the wake of the attacks.

Despite the recent surge of interest, skepticism about the trustworthiness of Muslims in America is anything but new.

National research data demonstrate that Muslims were ranked in the coldest third on a “feeling thermometer” by their fellow Americans of different faiths.

Even more troubling is the reality that religion-based violence against Muslims represented about 14% of hate crimes in 2013, despite the fact that Muslims comprise less than 1% of the US population.

The national attitude toward Muslims extends into the collegiate environment.

Our research on religious and spiritual campus climate has indicated that only 46% of students believe that Muslims are accepted on campus. But our data also point to ways in which college educators can make a real difference in the ways Muslims are perceived by Americans generally.

Prejudices on campus

Controversy around Muslims on campus has hit the headlines on a number of occasions.

Universities have faced criticism, for example, for providing worship space to Muslim students (most recently at Wichita State in Kansas). Earlier this year, Duke encountered an outcry from alumni after announcing plans to permit Muslim students to sound the call to prayer from the chapel bell tower. Similarly, in 2007 the University of Michigan-Dearborn faced a backlash after installing footbaths for Muslim students on campus.

These situations, unsurprisingly, have an impact on how Muslim students perceive their campus communities.

Bruce Speck’s study of Muslim college students demonstrates that they feel largely unsupported in their religious practices and subject to bias and disrespect both in and out of the classroom.

Incidents such as the murder of three Muslim students in North Carolina earlier this year continue to fuel fear in this community.

Students gather during a vigil on the campus of the University of North Carolina for Deah Shaddy Barakat, his wife Yusor Mohammad and Yusor’s sister Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, February 2015.
Chris Keane/Reuters

It is our belief that these prejudices and misperceptions damage the strength of our American democracy. Higher education has a role to play in beginning to address these challenges.

But what can campus leaders do?

Together with Alyssa Rockenbach at North Carolina State University, we have collaborated on research to answer precisely this question.

Data speak volumes

We developed a survey to examine the attitudes shown and values held by people on university campuses about religious diversity. From 2011-2014, we administered this survey at 52 colleges and universities.

The findings of our research point in some exciting directions for educators seeking to make a positive impact on negative perceptions of Muslims in higher education and beyond.

One of our key questions was related to the idea of how non-Muslim students perceive Islam and Muslims in the world. And following on from that, we wanted to know what experiences help non-Muslim students come to appreciate Islam and Muslims around the world.

We asked non-Muslim students to respond to a series of statements to gauge their level of appreciation for Muslims. These questions included, “Islam values service to others,” “Islam promotes peace,” and “In general, Muslims are moral and ethical people.”

Our subsequent data analysis revealed a variety of interesting trends.

Consistent with the literature on collegiate experiences, our analysis showed that the types of educational experiences students encounter within a campus community are critical in shaping their perceptions and attitudes.

Non-Muslim student appreciation for Islam and for Muslims around the world was associated with:

  • participating in interfaith experiences, such as an interfaith service activity or an interfaith dialogue
  • having uncomfortable conversations that moved non-Muslim students to examine their own prejudices, and
  • engaging in informal opportunities to interact across difference, like dining together or studying together.

However, opportunities to encounter difference did not always lead to greater appreciation of Muslims.

In fact, our research also showed that, among non-Muslim students, the following experiences were associated with a lack of appreciation of Islam:

  • attending their own or other formal religious services
  • being silenced and feeling unsafe to express their own faith freely on campus, often due to moments of conflict or tension around religion
  • feeling as though their college seems to favor certain worldviews above others
  • perceiving less support for their own religious or nonreligious identities.

A unique opportunity

What do these data points tell us? As the number of Muslim college students continues to grow, college educators have a unique opportunity to create and support productive meeting spaces that promote positive attitudes toward Muslims among non-Muslim college students.

As the number of international students from a variety of religious traditions increases on college campuses so will the opportunities for these students to return to their nations as leaders. Our work hopes to equip these future leaders with the tools needed to effectively and productively engage across religious differences.

However, increasing diversity on campus is only part of the solution.

Religious diversity needs support.
Pass a Method, CC BY-SA

In fact, the mere presence of diversity on campus may actually harm relations among communities, as diversity left unengaged and unsupported can lead to greater isolation and distrust.

Educators, we would argue, have the responsibility to appropriately design and thoughtfully support opportunities for interaction where students can genuinely learn and get to know one another.

Simply attending a religious service on or off campus or participating in a religious course is not enough.

Students are profoundly impacted by their own experiences of inclusion and exclusion. When they themselves feel safe and respected, they more readily extend a welcoming hand to others.

This suggests that educators must give greater attention to campus climate around religious identity and diversity as a whole.

Although students are less likely to formally identify with a religion over the course of their studies, there has been a notable increase of students who participate in voluntary religious activities since the 1990s.

Faculty, staff and other campus leaders play a critical role in shaping a community where all feel welcomed.

Let us be clear: we believe these data give us the opportunity to change the news headlines of the future. Our research indicates that creating thoughtful educational experiences and building a constructive campus climate for all around religion has the potential to change hearts and minds about all Muslims.

It’s worth noting that those benefits are not limited to Muslims. Jewish, atheist, Mormon students and more would all benefit from this type of collegiate experience.

If higher education were to prioritize this work, how might the world respond differently in the wake of major global events related to religion? We challenge educators to help us discover the answer to that question.

This piece was coauthored with Mary Ellen Giess from the Interfaith Youth Core.

The Conversation

Matthew Mayhew, Associate Professor of Higher Education, New York University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

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Matthew Lynch published in Equity, HBCU's, Higher Education, International Education

The covert racism that is holding back black academics

Kalwant Bhopal, University of Southampton

Students are walking out in protest against racial inequality and injustice in the US and have been rallying together in days of action at campuses across the country. The #StudentBlackout movement has challenged and confronted white supremacy and anti-black attitudes on university campuses, and has made demands for more black and minority ethnic faculty members.

So it is ironic that the US is the destination of choice for British black and minority ethnic academics who feel worn down by incidents of racism, exclusion and marginalisation in Britain. Recent research that I worked on, published by the Equality Challenge Unit, found that as a result of their experiences black and minority UK academics were significantly more likely to consider a move to overseas higher education than their white counterparts.

Many spoke of the potential opportunities they identified in working for American universities. I can’t help feeling they might have to re-evaluate their options in the light of what is going on in the US. Many of the demonstrations across American campuses have been triggered by specific local circumstances – such as reports of all-white parties and students in blackface at Yale.

But taken as a whole they represent a response to more widespread concerns about racism within American academic culture. These demonstrations also reflect the wider groundswell in concern across America exemplified by the Black Lives Matter demonstrations which have been sparked by unlawful killings by the police.

Protecting white privilege

In the UK, such protest has not yet been seen. Academics present themselves as guardians of a space that highlights liberal sentiments, progressive values and a commitment to meritocracy. Many regard their “seats of learning” as places that challenge inequalities and injustice. But this is clearly not always the case in reality.

My research has found that many black and minority ethnic academics report experiences of subtle, covert and nuanced racism in higher education in which white identity is privileged and protected within the space traditionally reserved for the white middle class.

During the past decade there has been a significant increase in the numbers of black and minority UK academic staff in higher education – from 6,000 staff in 2003-4 to almost 10,700 in 2013-14. There were even more non-UK black and minority academic staff, as the graph below shows.

But black and minority ethnic academics are far less likely to be in senior roles compared to their white colleagues: 11.2% of UK white academics were professors compared to 9.8% of UK black and minority ethnic staff (of which only 4.5% were black). There are only 20 deputy or pro vice-chancellors who are black or minority ethnic compared to the majority, 530, who are white.

Significant policy changes in the UK, such as the 2010 Equality Act and the introduction of the Race Equality Charter, designed to measure how successful universities were at delivering inclusive policy in practice, might suggest higher education had become more inclusive. But in reality, covert racist behaviour impacts heavily on the career trajectories of many black and minority ethnic academics.

A total of 21 higher education institutions took part in the pilot of the Race Equality Charter 2014 of which eight were successful in gaining a bronze award. The Race Equality Charter works in a similar vein to the Athena Swan charter, which was introduced in 2005 to advance the representation of women in science and engineering subjects.

On the outside

It is often hard to pin down or confront racist behaviour in universities because it is indicative of an environment in which inequality flourishes behind the scenes, rather than centre stage. For example, black academics report goalposts, such as selection criteria, being moved when they apply for promotion – which doesn’t happen for white colleagues.

In my research, which included interviews with 30 US-based academics and 35 who were based in the UK, respondents indicated that in both the UK and US an increase in fragility and risk within academia had resulted in greater competition for new jobs, threats of pay cuts, and fears about job security and tenure.

In a climate of financial global insecurity, competitiveness over job security was far more likely to privilege those from white middle-class backgrounds. Black academics I interviewed in both the US and UK were less likely than their white colleagues to have access to established networks of knowledge and support. These networks open the door for new opportunities in which job offers are made and access granted to particular institutions and insider processes.

I found that “who you know” still counts for far more than “what you know” and fears of job insecurity and fragility actively work to promote the interests of white established elites in academia. This environment of insecurity is of greater value to white academic elites, for who it serves to maintain their ascendancy.

While public displays of racism in the academy are rare, a more pernicious set of behaviour has emerged. Black and minority ethnic academics told me of instances when colleagues would not make eye contact with them in meetings, their opinions were not taken into account and there was constant undermining or criticism of their work.

We must continue to disrupt, challenge and dismantle such covert racism if we are to move forward in our quest for a socially just society.

The Conversation

Kalwant Bhopal, Professor of Education and Social Justice, University of Southampton

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

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Matthew Lynch published in Policy & Reform, Teachers

Student surveys: Measuring what tests cannot

Student surveys are being viewed by an increasing number of school officials, policymakers and researchers as the most effective tool currently available in measuring social and emotional goals for schools and their students. Qualities such as student-teacher relations, student engagement and growth mindset are not only being examined, but incorporated into accountability systems. This means that along with test scores and graduation rates, student state of mind will come into play when rating schools.

Researchers are convinced that students’ attitudes regarding learning, their skillfulness in working well with others and ability to self-regulate and persevere account for more than half of their long-term success.

Students will now be able to rate themselves on important indicators of achievement, such as social awareness and self-management. It has been documented that short, 20 minute surveys, in addition to teacher reports can accurately predict test scores, GPA, suspension and attendance outcomes.

Several school districts have joined forces with Panorama Education, a for-profit startup to analyze and administer these school surveys. With Panorama’s tools, schools are able to ask questions about what they deem important. Guidance is also provided by the company on which type of questions are backed by the best research. Access to questions other school systems have asked and what they have done to improve results is also provided.

Many school leaders find these non-academic factors crucial and are searching for means to document their progress. Increasingly, schools are viewing the academic component and standardized test results as only a fraction of the puzzle.

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Matthew Lynch published in Diversity, Equity

Using words, not swords: The black experience of white privilege

**The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

A guest post by Ginger McCarty 

More than 100 racially diverse students gathered on Thursday, Nov. 12. at the Garrett Hall bus stop near the amphitheater, summoned by – among other invitations – the Tab, marketed as “a Cambridge University’s Online Tabloid,”  launched in 2009, with a local reach initially, and after a few years (still only online) into college and university communities in the UK (now up to 45 of them) and now into college and University communities in the U.S.

Located in some – not yet all of the original colonies along the east coast of North America: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,  Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Delaware, South Carolina and Georgia (these last three are not yet represented), who gained independence as a new nation, nearly 240 years ago, when Thomas Jefferson was 33 years old, in 1776 .

There are occasional issues devoted to print publications of The Tab, traditionally twice annually, and categorically irreverent, if not strategically disruptive, perhaps similar in tone to a publication such as the Onion, in the U.S.

Officially sponsored by the Black Student Alliance and the University Chapter of the NAACP, though, the gathering on Thursday was called in order to demonstrate solidarity with students at Yale, the University of Missouri and anonymous threats on Wednesday night, evidently, at Howard University.

Writing in the Washington Post on Thursday morning, Susan Svriuga explains:

An anonymous threat to Howard University circulated on social media Wednesday night, with the author saying that anyone on the historically black university’s campus after 10 a.m. Thursday would “be the first to go” and closing with: “After all, it’s not murder if they’re black. …”

“I left MU yesterday because I couldn’t put up with it anymore,” the message continues, but expresses frustration about seeing the same issues in Maryland, alleging that black people are causing trouble everywhere. “Turn on the news and it’s always the [racial slur deleted] causing trouble everywhere.

“So I’ve decided. Any [n-word] left at Howard University after 10 tomorrow will be the first to go.” Any that try to escape on the Metro will regret that, the message continues. “I’ll go out a hero knowing I made the world better. I just hope at least someone else can see it too and continue the fight…” “After all, it’s not murder if they’re black.”

Although there seems to have been no indication that this threat was ‘credible,’ the message itself is quite is troubling – whether it was written,  as we are invited to believe, by a University of Missouri student, or whether it was written by someone whose purpose is to disrupt by intention, as a contrivance to be put to good effect, whether black or white. Desperate times – as some may well believe – will call for desperate measures.

During the gathering on Thursday, following a song and before inviting students to share their thoughts and experiences there was a recitation of the poem, “If We Must Die” by Claude McKay (1889-1948). A Jamaican-American author, he was a  key figure in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, fans of Boardwalk Empire may recall that in season three Lester White recommends McKay’s work to his sister Maybelle White, and offers to lend her his copy of “Spaghetti and Coffee.”

Like Malcolm X, McKay was an advocate of self-determination, believing that African-Americans could do well in becoming self-reliant. In his view, that was the path to being truly free no matter what one’s circumstances entailed, whether black or while. The collection of McKay’s work,s entitled Harlem Shadows: The Poems of Claude McKay, was first released in 1922. It is available here, online. The Autobiography of Malcolm X is also available online, here, as an offering of the National Humanities Center.
The scrupulously-verified book on which the prize-winning HBO series, is based –  which features brilliant portrayals of African-American characters –  is entitled Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times and Corruption of Atlantic City, written by Nelson Johnson, who is now a Superior Court Judge, who was enormously curious about the history of the people and the place where he was raised.
One of the organizers of the gathering, fourth-year College of Arts & Sciences’ student Jenné Nurse, is president of the University Chapter of the NAACP, and noted that she had experienced what she believes to have been racially motivated incidents here  at the University, since she arrived, and she observed that she  is not alone in this experience; believing that white privilege is not something that someone who is white themselves would have a need to  understand or to appreciate the kind of effect is might have on those who do not experience that privilege, and who may be deeply aware of it – as an experience of pain and vulnerability.

In an article appearing in The Tab on Friday, entitled A freshman’s reflection on the events at Yale and Mizzou, Osariemen Ogbemudia writes:

I was confused as to why, even in the midst of people who looked like me, I couldn’t fathom why everything that should be seamless was so incongruous. I was confused as to why I would return to my suite and feel a strange, hollow sense of abandonment. A permeating sense I don’t belong. Smiling gradually became more laborious. Even when you are hurting, you must smile. This week changed that. This week, being vulnerable was okay.

This week, black women who attend Yale University stopped the world and became vulnerable, openly. …

Time moved like a whirlwind and the internet blew up. People who seemed kind were suddenly vicious. Protests and demonstrations were almost a daily occurrence. I was amazed by Yalies, truly.

Over the course of a week, instead of these discussions being cries into a void, other races and genders listened. I was marveled people cared. People who didn’t need to care because it wasn’t their pain, shouldered our pain with us. I remember being surprised by the people who stood by my side as we yelled.

I was surprised people lined outside of the Af-Am house to see us be vulnerable. I remember being surprised when strangers held me. And I remember being surprised when I allowed myself to cry and be vulnerable.

I remember being moved when Yetunde Meroe, a student, said to me: “We did this last year in the hopes that you wouldn’t have to.”

Haden Parrish, a second-year College student at UVa, was interviewed by the Cavalier Daily, as he explained his reasons for attending the gathering on Thursday:

“This is a fight for a black issue, but as a white person, as an ally, it is our duty to support that fight There was a great turnout, but it needs to be bigger. We need to be able to fill up our amphitheater …”

Also, earlier in the day, on Thursday, the Carter G. Woodson Institute for African American Studies held its second forum “Black Girls Matter,” in a year-long series of programs, “Engaging Race,”a series of dialogues and deliberation aimed at heightening an awareness about an ongoing challenge folks in the African-American community still face.

The reference in the heading of this article to Words, Not Swords is a nod to the 1992 publication now in its 16th printing, from Farzeneh Milani, a faculty member in the Department of Middle Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures, and woman’s studies here at the University, which is an interdisciplinary program in the study of gender and sexualities “with an emphasis on transnational perspectives.”  It was announced in September that Prof. Milani was the 2015 winner of U.Va.’s Elizabeth Zintl Leadership Award, which honors a female employee for her professionalism, creativity and commitment to the University and to her field.

The Maxine Platzer Lynn Women’s Center presents the award annually in memory of Elizabeth Zintl, an accomplished writer and journalist who served as chief of staff in the Office of the President and made significant contributions to the University.
_________________________________________________________

Ginger McCarty reports information of public interest relating to the University of Virginia, the International Center for Jefferson Studies, the Library at Monticello,the Library of Congress and the Library of Virginia. She is a volunteer programmer for the listener-supported community radio station at the University of Virginia — 91.1 FM, and on wtju.net — where she co-host’s for the international music program, ‘World Turning.’ You may Contact Ginger at: www.gingermccarthy.com or @gingermccarthy on Twitter.

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