Faculty and Student Panels on Mediating Conversations on Critical Ethical Issues on Campus and in the Classroom

The University of Missouri. Yale University. Wheaton College. Multiple incidents around the nation on college campuses, in their dorms, at their fraternity and sorority parties, and in their classrooms, give rise to the need to get in front of difficult and sensitive ethical issues by opening dialogue and having conversations about how best our campus community –our faculty, our staff, our students, and our administrators - can mediate these as conversations in academic settings (the classroom) and in public. Today in the United States, campuses around the country are struggling with critical ethical issues including racial/ethnic biases, gender inequalities and violence, and religious persecution. These issues are indicative of larger national issues, including religious violence against Muslim persons, racial violence due to fear-speech and political one-upmanship, and college sexual assault and discrimination. How do we address these issues pedagogically for deeper and more engaged learning of our students?

This panel seeks to explore ways that faculty and staff can lead conversations in their classrooms and around campus concerning critical ethical issues ongoing in our nation. Oftentimes these conversations can be awkward, or uncomfortable, or may veer off into unintended areas. Our goal is to assist faculty and staff with sensitively identifying issues critical to students and to our campus community and mediating these conversations as a way to address tensions in our country and as they may arise on campus.