Spurred by reaction to the New York Times’ 1619 Project, the academic approach of Critical Race Theory has recently come under fire. Much of the fervor has centered on a misunderstanding of this approach and has led to resistance to exploring the very real influence of race and racism in society at both individual and systemic levels.

Aided by a multidisciplinary lens, students in this class will navigate these tensions to gain a fuller understanding of this complex issue at the heart of our nation. Students will study, discuss, and apply course content in a collaborative community.

Welcome to Race Matters (Spring 2022)

What Will You Learn?

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

Integrate knowledge from different disciplines to develop a more thorough understanding of race and racism
Identify contributors to and consequences of racism at individual and systemic levels
Articulate and reflect on individual and systemic ramifications of living in a racialized society

Rescheduled for Feb 17: Breaking Bread Together

Our first session will be facilitated by and Dr. Summer Carrol, associate professor of education, and Dr. Taylor Newton, associate professor of psychology.

The class will meet in the Cromer Dining Hall on Lenoir-Rhyne University's campus to share a meal and to begin our exploration of race and racism in America. We will be joined by community guest Betty Lohr, whose activism provided the inspiration for this class.

*UPDATED JANUARY 4* Due to both the delay of the start of the semester and to rising COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in our community, the meal we planned to share on campus to begin our exploration of race and racism has been postponed. We hope we will be able to join together in-person later this semester.

*UPDATED FEBRUARY 10* With dropping prevalence of COVID-19 in our community, the time is now right to join together to share both a meal and a conversation. See this announcement for more details and to register.

Jan 17-21: Race and Racism in the History of America

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Dr. Veronica McComb, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island and former associate professor of history here at Lenoir-Rhyne, will lead us through the historical context of race and racism in the United States.

Learning materials

Assignment 1 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Jan 24-28: The Nature of Race and Ancestry

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Dr. Scott Schaefer, associate professor of biology, will explore race and ancestry from a biological perspective that includes human origins and genetics.

Learning materials

Assignment 2 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Jan 31-Feb 4: Institutional and Systemic Racism

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Dr. Shameika Stokes, assistant professor of human services, will introduce an understanding of racism that is institutional, systemic, and pervasive in our society.

Learning materials

Assignment 3 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Feb 7-11: Race and Racism in the Mind

Prof. Michele Hewitt, adjunct professor of psychology and Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor at Crossroads Counseling Center, will guide us toward understanding bias in the minds of individuals, including prejudicial beliefs, behaviors, and emotions.

Learning materials

Assignment 4 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Feb 14-18: Racism in Economic Systems

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Dr. Tunay Oguz, associate professor of economics, will analyze systemic racism in economic policy from historical redlining to modern tax structures that codify inequality.

Learning materials

Assignment 5 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Toward the end of our conversation in this livestream, we were discussing income disparities and noting that some data Dr. Oguz shared this week in lecture showed that Asian Americans as a group had the highest household income of any racial/ethnic category. While this difference is accurate, it is also worth noting that Asian Americans are not a homogeneous group in this regard. More than any other racial/ethnic group in our country, Asian Americans have the largest amount of income disparity.

nks to an external site.)

Part of the key to understanding this disparity is understanding some of the history of immigration of Asian Americans. This cartoon is a great place to start.

Feb 21-25: Toward Educational Equity

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Dr. Leslie McKesson, adjunct professor of leadership studies and former dean at Western Piedmont Community College, will discuss ways of moving toward educational equity for individuals and communities of color.

Learning materials

Assignment 6 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Feb 28-Mar 4: Who Lives and Who Dies?

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Dr. Kim Price, associate professor of public health, will parse inequity in the healthcare system, including issues of access and diversity.

Learning materials

Assignment 7 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Mar 14-18: Race and Racism in Mental Health

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Dr. Janelle Carter-Robinson, assistant professor of counseling, will offer an overview of inequities in the mental health system, including stigma in treatment and the impact of race and racism on mental health.

Learning materials

Assignment 8 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Mar 21-25: Racial Disparities in Criminal Justice

Dr. Shahin Tasharrofi, assistant professor of criminal justice, will discuss the influence of race on the criminal justice system process and outcomes.

Learning materials

Assignment 9 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Mar 28-Apr 1: Race and Racism Through the Arts

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Dr. Ryan Luhrs, associate professor of music and director of choral activities, will explore black spirituals as both an artform and a mode of protest and will unpack racial bias in music education.

Learning materials

Assignment 10 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Apr 4-8: Religious Perspectives on Race and Racism

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Rev. Kermit Moss, professor of practical theology, will unpack race as a theological problem.

Learning materials

Assignment 11 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Apr 18-22: Telling Our Stories

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Prof. Laura Hope-Gill, assistant professor of writing and director of the Thomas Wolfe Center for Narrative, will teach us about storytelling as a tool to engage with the complexity of race and racism.

Learning materials

Assignment 12 for credit-seeking students

Thursday Night Livestream Recording

Apr 25-29: Breaking Bread Together, Again

Our final session will be facilitated by Dr. Summer Carrol, associate professor of education, and Dr. Taylor Newton, associate professor of psychology.

As we share a final meal together, we will seek to make connections across the different disciplinary perspectives explored throughout the class. Space will be limited to the first 100 students to register. Given the circus of concurrently livestreaming our first shared meal back in February, our final shared meal will be in-person only.

If you would like to attend this email on Thursday April 28 at 6pm, please register here by Tuesday April 26 (Links to an external site.). If space fills before then, we will let you know.

Finally, we would like to offer you an opportunity to reflect on your experiences in this course. These optional reflections will guide our conversation during our shared meal and are a way for you to participate, even if you can't be there in person. Please use this form to submit your reflection or email it to taylor.newton@lr.edu.

Wrapping up Race Matters (Spring 2022)

Thanks!

A generous grant from the Community Relations Council of the City of Hickory provided support for the meals shared as a part of this class. Additional funding was provided through a grant from the Lenoir-Rhyne University Center for Teaching and Learning and the support of the Office of Academic Affairs.