A theater company that’s been getting rave reviews across the country for helping professors improve multicultural teaching and learning comes to campus March 2-3, thanks to a Mellon Four-College Faculty Development grant.
The University of Michigan’s Center for Research on Learning and Teaching (CRLT) Players is an interactive theater group dedicated to engaging faculty in discussions of multicultural teaching and learning and institutional climate.
Their sketches are based on research concerning the experiences of underrepresented students and faculty, such as women faculty and students in science and engineering, students of color, and students with disabilities.
“I have heard rave reviews from colleagues at other colleges who have seen them perform, and I’m thrilled that they are coming to Union,” said Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs Therese McCarty.
The Mellon funding means faculty from Colgate University and Hamilton and Skidmore colleges will join their Union colleagues in continuing discussions about diversity that were held last winter at Skidmore.
The CRLT Players will perform two shows, each about two hours long, in Emerson Auditorium in the Taylor Music Center.
“Student Conflict in the Classroom” will be held after a dinner on Sunday, March 2.
It focuses on a classroom conversation that turns contentious, exploring questions surrounding students’ backgrounds and conflicting perspectives, instructor responsibility, and what does or does not constitute subject-appropriate discussion in the classroom.
“The Faculty Meeting” is set for the next morning, Monday, March 3. This sketch depicts a faculty discussion involving an important topic (a faculty search) and how gender dynamics and faculty rank influence the conversation and affect the participants. It is designed to improve the recruitment and retention of women faculty in science and engineering.
Department chairs are asked to contact Judy Ludwig (x6102 or ludwigja@union.edu) to report who will represent the department. Other interested faculty members are also encouraged to contact Ludwig.
For more information, visit: (http://www.crlt.umich.edu/theatre/theatre.html).