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DELAWARE, Ohio – Ohio Wesleyan University is pleased to announce its inaugural cohort of Equity Fellows. This spring, these 25 faculty will embark on a collaborative initiative aimed at fostering equity and anti-racism at Ohio Wesleyan.
The Equity Fellows program has been designed by Drs. Lisa Anderson-Levy and Catherine M. Orr of Beloit College, and is modeled after their innovative “Decolonizing Pedagogies” Project. Drs. Ashley Biser, Assistant Provost for Curriculum and Equity, and Nancy Comorau, Associate Professor of English, will work with Drs. Anderson-Levy and Orr to share their transformative process with the OWU campus.
Throughout the semester, Ohio Wesleyan’s Equity Fellows will meet biweekly to discuss readings, write reflections on pedagogy and process, and work to make our teaching and learning spaces more inclusive and equitable. Sessions will focus on various aspects of organizational practice and will require faculty to reflect on their identities as scholars and teachers. Faculty will consider how classroom, departmental, and institutional practices directly impact issues of inclusivity and equity in students’ personal and academic lives.
Participation in the Equity Fellows program will allow faculty to take a fresh look at how they approach their classes and make changes with an articulated focus on increasing equity. Faculty from the humanities and natural and social sciences will come together to learn with and from each other to better serve all of our students.
This extended and intensive professional development opportunity is part of Academic Affairs and the University’s Anti-Racism Initiative. It marks a significant milestone as Ohio Wesleyan works to realize its commitments to becoming a more inclusive and welcoming environment for all students, staff, and faculty. Please join us in congratulating the Equity Fellows as they begin their journey of self-reflection and action.
Lisa Anderson-Levy, Ph.D.
Dr. Lisa Anderson-Levy is Professor of Anthropology and affiliated faculty in Critical Identity Studies and Co-Principal Investigator of the Mellon-funded Decolonizing Pedagogies Project at Beloit College. Publications include “Colliding/Colluding Identities: Race, Class, and Gender in Jamaican Family Systems,” “An(Other) Ethnographic Dilemma: Subjectivity and the Predicament of ‘Studying Up,’” and “The End(s) of Difference? Towards an Understanding of the ‘Post’ in ‘Post-Racial.’”
Catherine M. Orr, Ph.D.
Dr. Catherine M. Orr is Professor and Chair of Critical Identity Studies and Co-Principal Investigator of the Mellon-funded Decolonizing Pedagogies Project at Beloit College. Her scholarly work has appeared in Feminist Studies, Women's Studies Quarterly, Hypatia, Atlantis, NWSA Journal, and Souls. She is co-editor of Rethinking Women's and Gender Studies (volumes 1 and 2) as well as co-author of Everyday Women's and Gender Studies: Introductory Concepts, all published by Routledge. She has served in numerous positions on the board of the National Women's Studies Association and is a facilitator for Witnessing Whiteness.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more undergraduate majors than many universities its size and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature program, The OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to integrate knowledge across disciplines, build a diverse and global perspective, and apply knowledge in real-world settings. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives” and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review “best colleges” lists. Learn more at owu.edu.