Student trustee conceives new course on Race in the U.S. and at Cornell

Maduka

By Franklin Crawford

Funa Maduka said there were moments in the past year when she thought Government 210 was "never going to happen."

But now it not only happened, it's happening in a big way.

Government 210 is a three-credit course called Race in the United States and at Cornell, and it is a rare achievement for several reasons. The first has to do with Maduka, a senior in history and student-elected member of the Cornell Board of Trustees.

Since arriving at Cornell, Maduka said she had wanted to "capitalize on the university's own diversity" in a classroom setting where a discussion of race could be sustained in an academically challenging yet supportive environment.

A year and a half ago, she pitched the idea for such a class to alumnus Joe Holland '78, a Cornell trustee emeritus.

"Funa and I began to work together, reaching out to fellow trustees and then reaching out to key administrators," said Holland. "It's important for leaders at upper echelons to have an understanding of these issues, how they impact students and also to find out where we can exercise our leadership responsibilities in ways to improve the climate of diversity on campus."

The grad student teaching assistants for Government 210 pose, March 10, in the lobby of Goldwin Smith Hall. They are, from left: Diana Hernández, Alyce Spotted-Bear, Robert Turner, Michelle Renee Smith, Jeff Selinger and Gabriela Galescu. Frank DiMeo/University Photography

Trustees not only embraced the idea, they "showed great interest in participating," said Holland, who added that he was "committed to incorporating a trustee component in the course."

That was in January 2003. By the end of January 2004, about 250 students were attending their first Race in the U.S. lecture -- 50 more students than were anticipated. And on March 10, 18 trustees arrived early for their weekend meeting on campus in order to attend Wednesday night sessions of the class.

It took a village to raise a subject as charged as race and place it in a viable academic framework. With a commitment from trustees, the generous support of Provost Biddy Martin, the direction of Vice Provost Isaac Kramnick and 10 faculty and six teaching assistants from across the disciplines, Maduka's vision materialized in just one year.

The journey from one student's idea to curricular reality "is highly unusual," said Kramnick, who coordinated the logistics and content of the complex course.

"My colleagues on the faculty were generous in giving their time and energy to the many meetings we had planning the course and now in giving the course," he said. "They deserve the credit."

Race in the United States and at Cornell is cross-listed in seven departments. Core faculty members and their fields include: Mary Pat Brady, English and Latino studies; Ray Dalton, art; David Harris, David Grusky and Thomas Hirschl, sociology; Robert Harris, Africana studies; Mary Katzenstein, government; Michele Moody-Adams, philosophy and ethics; and James Turner, Africana studies.

Students attend Monday evening lectures and obligatory Wednesday evening sections or discussion groups. The syllabus is organized into five parts: The Concept of Race, The Social Dynamics of Race, The Politics of Race, Race and Culture, and Race at Cornell. Lectures and readings comprise the academic grist for the class, but the guts of this anything-but-gut course are the discussion sections.

While the faculty lectures are vital, teaching assistants who lead the Wednesday sections play a crucial, frontline role. Led by Robert Turner, a graduate student in government, the TAs represent a cross-disciplinary mix: Gabriela Galescu and Diana Hernández are both graduate students in sociology; Jeffrey Selinger and Michelle Renee Smith are in government; and Alyce Spotted-Bear is in education. Together they handle 11 sections of more than 20 students each.

From left, Christine Hum '04, ILR; Kaprisha Cressel '05, government and sociology; and Devin Sullivan '04, ILR, listen to lecturer Mary Katzenstein, professor of government, during the Government 210 class in Warren Hall, March 29. Nicola Kountoupes/University Photography

TAs strive to keep section discussions objective. But there are few things as personal as race.

"Initially I was concerned that some students might be uncomfortable sharing their opinions in class, [but] I've found discussions to be passionate and interesting," said Smith. "We worked very hard to design ground rules to conduct discussions in a respectful manner while not quashing differences of opinion."

Selinger said his students "really seem to yearn for an opportunity to speak honestly about the subject without having to deal with pointing fingers, etc. There have been some tense moments when awkward things were said, but I have yet to see a rush to offense. They really do not want to gang up on each other -- no matter what the disagreement. This makes the classroom a safe place for students to say things that they might not say otherwise in a racially mixed environment."

Richetta Coelho, a senior in Arts and Sciences, concurred. "The course is about the students, and the students make the course -- especially in the sections," Coelho said. "I was impressed by the way race is approached from an objective point of view and that it's not just an educational tool used to teach majors in this field. The class discussions are based on scholarly research and statistics, not just personal experience, and yet everyone gets a chance to be heard. [But] if you are ignorant about what race is and what it means, [the sections] are a good place to correct it."

Hernández said it's a big challenge for some students to "think critically" about race. She said "one has to be able to identify subjective and objective -- personal and 'other' -- situations that are influenced by race" in a nonconfrontational setting.

Class member Rachel Lynn '06, ILR, said achieving that perspective hasn't been easy for her. "The bulk of my education dealing with race has been history or minority studies classes," she said. "Neither of those classes did more than introduce the idea of the historical and present social tensions or discuss personal experiences of people of color. People share stories and comment on experiences that I was unaware people still had today."

Lynn said despite ground rules that emphasize respect and fairness, she is often wary of saying the wrong thing. Even so, Lynn said, "I would highly recommend this course to other students because right now, it is probably the largest site of interaction among people of different races at Cornell."

Trustee Stephen Ashley '62 attended a section with fellow trustee Martha Coultrap '71 on March 10. Those sections were devoted to the subject of integration and race relations at Cornell. Discussions were based in part on readings and a lecture given by Robert Harris the previous Monday.

Ashley said he admired the intellectual verve and honesty among students in his session. "The students engaged us and we engaged them in an excellent discussion," he said. "We were impressed by how open and vulnerable the students were willing to be and how curious they were to know what we, as trustees, thought about race -- from broader university policies to individual incidents."

At a reception in the Goldwin Smith Hall foyer following the trustee sessions, Maduka and Holland paused to reflect on a whirlwind accomplishment.

"It's just great to have students and trustees so interested and engaged in discussing race at Cornell," said Holland. "It's the fulfillment of a vision I've had for a long, long time."

Said Maduka: "I hope the course will be offered every year ... the discussion on race doesn't end in one semester; it is ongoing not only on campus but in our nation and world as well."

A few days later, after a guest lecture by President Jeffrey Lehman on "Affirmative Action and Higher Education," class participant Omar Nolan voiced sentiments shared by many students in Government 210. "The course surpassed my expectations and delved into issues more deeply and concretely than I thought it possibly could," said the senior in Architecture, Art and Planning. "It's been a real eye opener, and the rest of the Cornell community should have the chance to experience this class. It should be mandatory."