Social Justice Case Study

1. Meghan Gaffney, Rochelle Holmes, Erin Hostetler, Tyrone Reese Social Justice Case Study

2. Case Study Background • Central University • Urban Campus • Private • 20,000 students • Demographics • 41% White/Non-Hispanic • 19% Asian-American • 16% Other • 10% International • 8% African-American • 6% Hispanic

3. Key Constituents • Ross Ravenclaw • First-year student • Jewish • Male • Statement “Shut up, you water buffalo!” • Water buffalo: Hebrew word meaning loud • Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. • Historically black • 15 women • Celebrating Founder’s Day

4. CASE STUDY REVIEW

5. Issues • Racial discrimination/Bias incident • Intent vs. impact • Identities and intersectionality • Conduct code • Larger communities impacted • Education on both sides • Bad interpersonal/Intercultural communication • Power dynamics • Setting precedent of incident response

6. Applicable Theories-Race Black Psychosocial Theories • 1. Cross Model of Psychological Nigrescence (1978) (Evans et al, 2009) • Immersion-Emersion Stage • Internalization Stage • 2. Phinney’s Model of Ethnic Identity Development (1992) (Evans et al, 2009) • Stage 1: Diffusion/Foreclosure: • Stage 2: Moratorium

7. Applicable Theories- Race White Psychosocial Theories • Theory of two faced racism – Whites in the backstage and front stage(2007) (Picca and Feagin, 2007) • Helms White Identity Development Model (1984) (Evans et. al, 2009) • Two phases: each with three statuses that mark development • Status 1 is Contact

8. Applicable Theories-Gender Critical Womanist Theory • Patricia Hill Collins Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment (1990) • The struggle against racism, classism, and sexism is inextricably linked with a parallel struggle for independence, self reliance, and self-definition. • Experience, consciousness, and action are interdependent. • Personal expressiveness is highly valued. Personal expressiveness, emotions (and the appropriateness of emotions in dialogues), and empathy. • Banks-Wallace Womanist Epistemology (2000) • Experience as a criterion of meaning • Use of dialogue in assessing knowledge claims • Ethic of caring • Ethic of personal responsibility

9. Applicable Theories- Intersectionality • Abes, Jones, McEwen Meaning-Making Model (2004)

10. Applicable Theories-Spirituality Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development (1958) • How people make moral judgments • Cognitive-developmental • Stage theory • Preconventional: obeying rules so as not to be punished and refraining from physical harm to persons and property, but only following rules when it is in their interest to do so. (Evans et al, 2009)

11. Applicable Theories-Student Development Chickering’s (1969) Vectors of Development: 1. Developing Competence 2. Managing Emotions 3. Moving Through Autonomy 4. Developing Mature Interpersonal Relationships 5. Establishing Identity 6. Developing Purpose 7. Developing Integrity (Evans et al, 2009)

12. Immediate Short-Term Interventions RESIDENCE HALLS • Assign roles to staff • Media contact • Student contact • On-site crisis response • Immediate email from Residence Life Coordinator • Staff meeting with professional residence life staff and resident assistants • Meeting with Delta Sigma Theta (DST) • Gather thoughts on the evening and how it affected the group • Gather how the incident affected them on personal levels. • At meeting gather information for DST president to present at the following intervention. • Address noise incident

13. 2-3 Day Short-Term Interventions • Bring advocacy units into the halls for visibility, response • RA meetings with floors or houses, small groups, and individual residents • Community standards session regarding noise violations • Sanction mediated discussion • Utilize advocacy units for cultural programming • Collaboration between: • African American Resource Center • Office of the Chaplain • Central University’s Women’s Center • Residence Life staff to handle programming related to: • Communication • Conflict resolution both in small groups and by house or floor

14. Short-Term Interventions UNIVERSITY WIDE • Notify offices about incident, especially advocacy centers and offices directly related • Senior Staff On-Duty/ Notify Public Relations Office • Send visible SA presence to facilitate organic meeting that will happen in Greek community • Utilize the counseling center

15. Long-Term Interventions • Re-evaluation of University Protocol • Define terms to make less vague • Include student voice in the discussion about changes • Bias, Judicial, Media, Residence Halls-Community Standards • Keep advocacy units visible and collaborative • Use technology resources to develop sense of community • RA check-ups ongoing • Community wide forum • Multiple student groups • Address bias incident • Review campus security and safety • Follow up on media • Publicize new language initiatives

16. Potential Outcomes • Not to escalate the situation • Address concerns in a timely manner • Greek ruling class – hold this group accountable • All parties learn about other identities and themselves • Addressing the impact on community at multiple levels • A visible Student Affairs presence will be reinforced • Students will receive care and support • Immediate and long term programs will be established • Language would be reevaluated and updated • Communication between units, organizations, and offices across the university. • Silos and islands will be addressed and possibly collapsed

17. Potential Unintended Consequences • Not validating feelings of sorority and Ravenclaw • Overreacting or under reacting • Student perceptions of University response • Programs can preach to the choir • Victimizers who did not own their actions have no consequences • Ravenclaw sees others getting away with negative behaviors • Unwelcomed media attention • Impact of campus perception

18. Power, Privilege, Prejudice • Knowing yourself • Identities • Visible • Invisible • Unintended bias • Neutrality

19. References Banks-Wallace, J. (2000). Womanist ways of knowing: Theoretical considerations for research with African American Women. Advanced Nursing Science, 22(3), 33-45. Evans, N., et al. (2009) Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Hill-Collins, P. (1999) Black feminist thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and they politics of empowerment. New York: Routledge. Picca, L., & Feagin, J. (2007) Two faced racism: Whites in the backstage and frontstage. New York: Routledge.