Ohio University administrators are offering a new class next quarter in an effort to increase understanding of diversity on campus.
Introduction to Diversity, which will be taught by Yegan Pillay, assistant director of the office for institutional equity, will expose students to topics such as racism, sexism, sexual orientation, ethnicity, disabilities, ageism and religion. Pillay said he hopes the course will serve as a springboard into other diversity-focused classes like Women's Studies and African-American studies.
The course, listed as UC 169, is an expanded version of a diversity workshop Pillay taught at OU. The option for course credit should increase the concept popularity among students, Pillay said. The class also goes more in depth than the workshop and has more of a theoretical base.
When Pillay pitched the idea of a diversity class to University College Dean David Descutner, the dean was thrilled.
The university has a duty to expose college students to diversity because college is when many students are first exposed to such different viewpoints, and students need to embrace and appreciate these differences, Descutner said.
Pillay brings an important perspective to the diversity dialogue and is respected by administrators, said William Smith, executive assistant to the president for institutional equity.
Pillay's commitment to diversity will give a global context to problems that exist in the United States, Smith said.
I think (the class is) going to be a homerun and will encourage and foster other course development here at OU, Smith said.
The class is currently an experimental offering, and the future of the class depends on student feedback. More class times should be available soon; four other faculty members have expressed interest in teaching the class.
Introduction to Diversity is not in the regular schedule of classes because it was submitted past deadline. The class can be found under the UC 169 listing on the registrar's Web site (http://www.ohio.edu/registrar).
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