Guidelines for Faculty Best Community Practices
Power and Voices
- Be aware of power dynamics, whether among colleagues or between colleagues and students.
- Be open to criticism and avoid being dismissive.
- Maintain professionalism in speech; establish boundaries with students and colleagues regarding communication channels.
- Within appropriate guidelines, make every effort to respect student privacy. Treat student conversations as confidential unless given explicit permission to share them.
- Foster an atmosphere that encourages participation by all.
- Try to empower every individual to speak and recognize that disempowered individuals often do not feel comfortable doing so.
Cultures
- Treat people of all cultural backgrounds equitably.
- Respect and understand the unique cultural perspectives of students from all ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. Avoid making assumptions about students based on their backgrounds.
- Avoid charged language.
- Avoid assuming that an individual of a certain culture or background can serve as an ambassador for the entire culture. However, allow students to speak up for their culture when they feel it is necessary.
- Speak to second-language English speakers just as you would native English speakers. However, offer constructive criticism without punishment within the classroom and in grading.
Bodies
- Respect the bodily autonomy of others.
- Touch students only with their permission, and only in cases of pedagogical necessity. Have a discussion at the beginning of the collaboration about the level of comfort regarding physical touch and re-evaluate periodically.
- Avoid casually commenting on the physical appearance of others.
- Avoid sexually charged language.
- Inquire about and use the pronouns which individuals feel best reflect their gender identity.
- Suggestions regarding attire for professional activities should be made without regard to gender or reference to physical attributes of individuals.
Ability
- Avoid calling attention to or stigmatizing persons with mental or physical disabilities.
- Have a discussion at the beginning of the collaboration about the specific needs of the student with disabilities in order to ensure that the accommodations made are as suited to them as possible.
- Ask students with disabilities how they wish to be referred to in regards to their disabilities.
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