Abstract:

During the summer of 2020, the United States was in a moment of social crisis. COVID-19 raged across the country, public health was transformed into political debate, and a man named George Floyd was murdered by police officers in Minnesota. The combination of these events led to a surge in protests and calls for social justice emerging across the globe. Meanwhile, university classrooms were left vacant due to pandemic closures, leaving students, faculty, and administrators to reconcile these conflicts through digital – and distanced – learning platforms. How could universities meet calls for social justice and provide students with the knowledge and skills to understand contemporary sociocultural shifts? This question became a major focus at DeVry University (United States). A blended learning, multi-campus institution, DeVry has a diverse student body, with many students from underrepresented populations and adult learners. While DeVry is proud of its diverse community, the summer of 2020 posed the question: Was the education offered providing students with the necessary tools to understand and engage in national life responsibly and meaningfully?

To engage this complex question, this paper presents a case study at DeVry University that examines the development of a comprehensive general education curriculum devoted to issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). This curricular program is designed to engage students in material and issues related to underrepresented populations and provide skills to help students navigate through increasingly diverse professional and social spaces within in global context. Furthermore, the DEI program at DeVry promotes dialogue and community building that challenge traditional educational boundaries. To contextualize these initiatives and evaluate their success, I deploy a Cultural Studies methodology, including theorist Homi K. Bhabha’s notion of “third spaces” and Critical Race Theory. This paper builds on these conversations to consider the process and impact of a DEI curriculum in relation to developing skills to meet to professional, intellectual, and social needs of our modern moment. This paper thus argues that diversity, equity, and inclusion focused curriculum enhances 21st century skills within general education programs.

This argument interrogates the following questions: How can we transform Bloom’s Taxonomy into a new methodology that empowers our students from diverse walks of life to meet the needs of moments in our shared global history? What 21st century skills reflect the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion? How do we prepare faculty to engage students in ways that are mindful and meaningful? To unpack these complex questions, this paper highlights the use of three core processes in establishing a DEI curriculum plan. First, this paper explores the creation of learning objectives to frame a DEI curriculum. Second, this paper considers the process of course design and development through a DEI lens. Finally, this paper illustrates a comprehensive training plan for faculty to develop best practices in the classroom and build community across academic departments. Together, these actions have created a program where students see themselves – their diverse histories and values – in the classroom. Perhaps more importantly, this curricular program prepares students to effectively engage in the ever-changing global landscape.

Keywords:

General Education, Curriculum Design, Diversity.