The SGA kicked off the 19th annual Civil Rights Conference with a panel on Tuesday, Feb. 12.
This panel consisted of four students representing each grade level and two moderators.
The freshman class representative was Criminal Justice major, freshman Council President
The sophomore class representative was Management major and Vice President of the Black Student Association, from Metropolis, Illinois, Sarah Cruz.
Representing the junior class was Political Science major, SGA President
Finally, the senior class was represented by Psychology major, 2017-2018 Black Student Association President
The two moderators were Christopher Puckett, a senior Sociology major, and Caleb Crouch, a senior Secondary Education major.
This panel, which received a mix of questions from moderators and the audience, aimed to set the tone for the Civil Rights Conference by highlighting problems African-American students still face in the classroom while attending a Predominantly White Institution (P.W.I.).
The panel focused on many topics such as what issues have the panelists had with faculty on campus. The panelists also spoke about times when they had to speak on behalf of African-Americans in the classroom.
Other questions asked were if they felt the need to adapt to the culture of the majority at UTM, their worst/best experience in the classroom and negative experiences that they may have had on campus with other students or faculty.
The panelists tended to agree that most issues were situational and that at UTM, issues that they face are not hard to handle, but there is the ability to grow on our campus.
Near the end of the panel, each panelist recommended options for change, such getting to know the person without first thinking of the skin tone, acknowledging the differences in students without being biased and making assumptions, working towards growth by continuing to have these discussions on campus and encouraging conversations between students, faculty, staff and anyone on or off campus.
“I just hope that my and the other
The audience participated by asking many questions, like such as how best to engage in the conversation specifically concerning the difficulties that are brought on by our current political climate, how could college have been different had you instead gone to a Historically Black College or University and what do you believe are the benefits of attending a P.W.I as an African-American student?
Courtney Stetler, a senior Criminal Justice major who was in attendance, said, “It was interesting to hear criticism aimed at the teachers within their classrooms just because the mindset seems to be that the racism black students experience, explicit or implicit, is mostly either from an institutional level and should be addressed by the administrators or at a personal level and should be addressed by the student peers.”
The SGA, Civil Rights Activity Council and the BSA are continuing this conversation throughout the Civil Rights Conference and potentially on through the
More information about events during the Civil Rights Conference can be found at utm.edu/civilrights .
