Tony Norman: Anti-gay bullies trend the wrong way; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 4/24/15

Tony Norman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Anti-gay bullies trend the wrong way:

"In a public statement, the McGuffey School District promised to investigate all allegations of violence, bullying and intimidation. “We will follow our Student Code of Conduct, and file legal citations, as warranted,” the statement read. “We resolve to ensure that all children can grow and learn in a safe, supportive environment free from discrimination.”

Meanwhile, it would be difficult not to recognize that an enormously teachable moment has arrived at McGuffey High School. Teachers who may have been reluctant to deal with questions of bias in the past are now in a unique position to lead their students into a constructive conversation.

A week after the anti-gay protest, things are considerably quieter in Claysville. If they’re lucky, the boys in the flannel shirts are learning that color-coordinated bigotry is scarcely an improvement on the white sheets of another group of losers who shall remain nameless."

What Google tells us about working women; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 4/21/15

Danielle Paquette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; What Google tells us about working women:

"Researchers at the University of Washington recently analyzed the top 100 Google image search results for 45 professions, including not only chief executives but doctors, welders and bartenders. They found female workers are generally underrepresented online, compared to occupation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. About 27 percent of American CEOs, for example, are women. But only 11 percent of the Google image results for “CEO” showed women (not including Barbie).

In addition, many images retrieved by the web’s top search engine happen to be hyper-sexualized caricatures."

Marvel Comics Outs All-New X-Man; Comic Book Resources, 4/22/15

Kevin Melrose, Comic Book Resources; Marvel Comics Outs All-New X-Man:

"Confirming a long-held fan theory, pages from “All-New X-Men” #40 have leaked online ahead of Wednesday’s release that reveal Iceman is gay.

The development has been picked up on by a number of gay media outlets, from The Advocate to NewNowNext. However, Marvel had no comment.

Debuting in 2012, the series centers on the five original X-Men — Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman and Jean Grey — who are brought from the past to the present to confront their counterparts."

How to solve Silicon Valley's diversity challenges? Google has ideas; CNet, 4/18/15

Richard Nieva, CNet; How to solve Silicon Valley's diversity challenges? Google has ideas:

"But fixing Silicon Valley's preference for white males won't happen immediately.

"We have a lot more work to do," said Laszlo Bock, Google's head of people operations (Google parlance for human resources). "For a long time we'll have a lot more work to do."

But now the question is how, and he mentions part of it in a book on management he released this month called "Work Rules!" In it, he talks about the nuances of working and management at Google, including how the company nudges women to nominate themselves for promotions, as it is done in the engineering world. In an interview, another program he also talked about was a "Googler in Residence" initiative started with historically black colleges."

Are race relations worse under Obama?: Perhaps, but the president has little to do with it; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 4/19/15

Larry E. Davis, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Are race relations worse under Obama?: Perhaps, but the president has little to do with it:

"Beginning, perhaps, with the beating of Rodney King by white Los Angeles police officers in 1991, the modern-day abuse of black people has become steadily more exposed. This has culminated in the recent police killings of black men in New York, South Carolina and elsewhere that have become known to almost everyone due to the ubiquity of smartphones and social media.

Social media have made racism more audible and more visible. They have enabled acts of racism to be captured and carried instantly to millions of people. Social media are doing exactly what television did in the civil rights era — exposing injustice.

This is a good thing. Exposure can help curb racial bigotry. But social media have the added benefit of allowing millions to participate in that exposure by posting and reposting videos, interviews, news articles and commentary.

Behavior not only reflects attitudes, it can change attitudes. And research suggests that once we cease to engage in a given behavior there is less reason to maintain the thinking that supported it. Hence, by exposing, thereby discouraging, thereby reducing racist behavior, social media may also help to reduce racially biased attitudes."

Where Are the Teachers of Color?; New York Times, 4/11/15

Motoko Rich, New York Times; Where Are the Teachers of Color? :

"According to Richard M. Ingersoll, a professor of education and sociology at the University of Pennsylvania who has analyzed Education Department data, the number of minority teachers has actually doubled since the late 1980s. The real problem, he said, is not recruitment, but retention.

Teacher turnover is a challenge in general, but Mr. Ingersoll said nonwhite teachers were more likely to resign than their white counterparts. They are disproportionately assigned to schools with large populations of children from low-income families, and are subjected to “student discipline problems and lack of resources and lower salaries, with often more top-down and scripted curricula,” said Mr. Ingersoll. He said minority teachers frequently cited frustration with management and lack of autonomy as reasons they quit...

Starving for Wisdom; New York Times, 4/16/15

Nicholas Kristof, New York Times; Starving for Wisdom:

"So, to answer the skeptics, here are my three reasons the humanities enrich our souls and sometimes even our pocketbooks as well...

Third, wherever our careers lie, much of our happiness depends upon our interactions with those around us, and there’s some evidence that literature nurtures a richer emotional intelligence.

Science magazine published five studies indicating that research subjects who read literary fiction did better at assessing the feelings of a person in a photo than those who read nonfiction or popular fiction. Literature seems to offer lessons in human nature that help us decode the world around us and be better friends.

Literature also builds bridges of understanding. Toni Morrison has helped all America understand African-American life. Jhumpa Lahiri illuminated immigrant contradictions. Khaled Hosseini opened windows on Afghanistan.

In short, it makes eminent sense to study coding and statistics today, but also history and literature.

John Adams had it right when he wrote to his wife, Abigail, in 1780: “I must study Politicks and War that my sons may have liberty to study Mathematicks and Philosophy. My sons ought to study Mathematicks and Philosophy, Geography, natural History and Naval Architecture, navigation, Commerce and Agriculture, in order to give their Children a right to study Painting, Poetry, Musick, Architecture, Statuary, Tapestry and Porcelaine.”"

New State of America’s Libraries Report finds shift in role of U.S. libraries; American Library Association (ALA), 4/12/15

Macey Morales, American Library Association (ALA); New State of America’s Libraries Report finds shift in role of U.S. libraries:

"The lack of diverse books for young readers continues to fuel concern. Over the past 12 months the library community has fostered conversations and fueled a groundswell toward activism to address the lack of diversity reflected in children’s literature—both in content and among writers and illustrators.

A current analysis of book challenges recorded by ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) from 2001 – 2013, shows that attempts to remove books by authors of color and books with themes about issues concerning communities of color are disproportionately challenged and banned. A challenge is defined as a formal, written complaint filed with a library or school requesting that a book or other material be restricted or removed because of its content or appropriateness.

In 2014, the OIF received 311 reports regarding attempts to remove or restrict materials from school curricula and library bookshelves. Eighty percent of the 2014 Top Ten List of Frequently Challenged Books reflect diverse authors and cultural content.

The 2014 Top Ten List of Frequently Challenged Books include:

1) "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," by Sherman Alexie

Reasons: anti-family, cultural insensitivity, drugs/alcohol/smoking, gambling, offensive language, sex education, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group, violence. Additional reasons: “depictions of bullying”"

2015 Provost’s Diversity Institute for Faculty Development; University of Pittsburgh

University of Pittsburgh; 2015 Provost’s Diversity Institute for Faculty Development:

"The 2015 Provost’s Diversity Institute for Faculty Development was created to offer University of Pittsburgh faculty the opportunity to increase awareness about diversity and develop the skills needed to teach in a diverse, multicultural environment. Whether it’s expanding your diversity mindfulness in classroom discussions or designing learning activities that incorporate a variety of perspectives, this institute is appropriate for any full-time faculty member who wants to deepen his or her teaching practice. We strongly encourage your participation.

◦Four sessions will be held this summer – the kickoff event and three faculty development sessions. Sign up for one or all four. ◦Open to full-time faculty at all five Pitt campuses.

◦Faculty who participate in a faculty development session (May 15 & 22, May 19 & 20, June 3 & 4) will receive a stipend of $500 per session. Faculty who complete at least two of the three faculty development sessions may apply for additional funding for course materials or activities related to course redesign reflecting what was learned during the institute.

◦Meals will be provided.

◦Faculty from regional campuses should contact the Center for Instructional Development and Distance Education (CIDDE) for more information about a partial travel stipend for travel to Oakland.

Apr 30 & May 1, 2015: “Who Needs This?” An Interactive Theatre Performance on Race Relations on Campus and workshop on Diversity Topics Ben Saypol

May 15 & May 22: Building Faculty Awareness and Capacity – Discovering the Role of Unconscious Bias in Classroom Pedagogy and Dynamics Audrey Murrell

May 19 & 20: An Inclusive Classroom: Practical Lessons and Techniques for Constructing a Truly Open Learning Environment for LGBTQIA Students Susan Marine

June 3 & 4: Race in America Ralph Bangs

REGISTER NOW! SPACE IS LIMITED!

If you have questions about the institute, please contact Jessica Knab at (412) 383-9729 or jck67@pitt.edu."

After ‘Interns’ Star Came Out in Russia, a Mix of Fury and Shrugs; New York Times, 4/10/15

Rachel Donadio, New York Times; After ‘Interns’ Star Came Out in Russia, a Mix of Fury and Shrugs:

"In February, Odin Biron, an American actor who plays a naïve American son of two gay fathers in the hugely popular Russian medical sitcom “Interns,” took a calculated risk. He disclosed that he was gay...

Mr. Biron’s coming out took guts. That an actor is gay is hardly news, even in Russia. But what is rare is that he went public. In recent years, the nation’s ingrained “don’t ask, don’t tell” culture has run up against a 2013 law that criminalizes so-called gay “propaganda,” and another law against offending the sensibilities of religious believers. One of Mr. Biron’s co-stars on “Interns” — Ivan Okhlobystin, a former Russian Orthodox priest who said last year that gay people should be burned alive in ovens — called Mr. Biron “a sodomite.” He also said that Mr. Biron was crazy to come out and cause an unnecessary scandal for the show...

In a phone interview last week, Mr. Okhlobystin said he was still in shock. “He wasn’t discussed or judged, but everyone was wondering, ‘Why? Why now?’ ” Mr. Okhlobystin said. “This scandal is embarrassing. It would be better if it never happened.”

He said he could no longer remain friends with Mr. Biron. “Of course not,” he said.

“It put us in an idiotic position,” he continued. “A sodomite is working near us, and then he confesses that. It would be better for us not to know.” He added that as professionals, they would finish shooting the rest of the season."

New Prize Rewards Economic Diversity at Colleges; New York Times, 4/7/15

David Leonhardt, New York Times; New Prize Rewards Economic Diversity at Colleges:

"Top colleges have many reasons to avoid enrolling a lot of low-income students.

The students need financial aid, which can strain a university’s budget. Although many of the students have stellar grades, they often have somewhat lower SAT scores than affluent students, which can hurt a university’s ranking. Low-income students also tend to lack the campus sway of other groups, like athletes or children of alumni, in lobbying for admission slots.

In an effort to push back against these incentives — even just a little — a foundation in Northern Virginia on Tuesday is announcing a new no-strings-attached $1 million prize. It will be awarded each year to a college that excels in enrolling and graduating low-income high achievers. The inaugural winner of the money — from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, which also runs a large scholarship program — is Vassar College."

First-Generation Students Unite; New York Times, 4/8/15

Laura Pappano, New York Times; First-Generation Students Unite:

"A professor once described how hardships become inscribed on one’s body, and Ms. Barros thought of her father, a janitor at a home for troubled boys, and the wrinkles carved in his face from worrying about money and her mother’s health. Majoring in sociology, she says, “has made me hyperaware of class differences here.”

Ana Barros leads the Harvard College First Generation Student Union. “This is a movement,” she says. “We are not ashamed of taking on this identity.”

Weary of trying to pass as middle class, Ms. Barros decided to “come out,” borrowing the phrase from the gay community. She joined and now leads the two-year-old Harvard College First Generation Student Union, which has 300 on its email list. “This is a movement,” she said. “We are not ashamed of taking on this identity.”

On the nation’s most prestigious campuses, first-generation-in-college students like Ms. Barros are organizing, speaking up about who they are and what’s needed to make their path to a degree less fraught. There’s the Hidden Minority Council at Princeton and the First-Generation Low-Income Partnership at Yale and Columbia. Lynda Lopez started the Socioeconomic Diversity Alliance after a Facebook page she created, “UChicago Class Confessions,” filled with frank exchanges within minutes."

Interviewing While LGBTQ: The questions and issues you should think about on the academic job market; Chronicle of Higher Education, 4/6/15

Richard D. Reitsma, Chronicle of Higher Education; Interviewing While LGBTQ: The questions and issues you should think about on the academic job market:

"When I entered the academic job market I made a personal choice to be open but not chatty about my sexuality. That was partly necessitated because my teaching and research focuses on LGBTQ issues. I never hid my sexual orientation on my application materials, yet neither did I state it directly. I left it to search committees to infer.

Over the years, I have spoken to LGBTQ colleagues who took a variety of approaches on the academic job market. Some chose to be even more direct than I was, mentioning their sexual orientation and their partners in their cover letters and during interviews. Others chose to be discreet — and discrete — presenting a professional self neatly divorced from the personal. They had both a regular CV that listed everything about them, and a "closeted" CV on which all references to anything remotely LGBTQ-oriented (conferences, workshops, courses, publications) were scrubbed from the professional narrative.

Being LGBTQ on the academic market was a far more sensitive issue 10 years ago, yet it remains dicey for candidates in large swaths of the country. To help other LGBTQ people struggling through the interview process, I’d like to offer the following tips."

Over 50 and Back in College, Preparing for a New Career; New York Times, 4/3/15

Kerry Hannon, New York Times; Over 50 and Back in College, Preparing for a New Career:

"In March, deans, provosts and vice presidents from 22 institutions, including Arizona State University, Columbia University, Community College of Vermont, Cornell University, Denison University, Tulane University, U.C.L.A. and the University of Washington, held a daylong summit at New York University to discuss future curriculums and collaborations. Their mission was to work together on ways to create intergenerational, age-friendly institutions and build a network to help students like Ms. White and others who want to reboot to service-oriented work.

Among the challenges are how to provide courses for those in an aging population who lack the time or financial resources for full-blown degree-based programs. One idea was to offer older students college credits for work and life experience as a way to reduce the number of classes needed for a degree."

Mission Statement for We Need Diverse Books

Mission Statement for We Need Diverse Books:

"We Need Diverse Books™ is a grassroots organization of children’s book lovers that advocates essential changes in the publishing industry to produce and promote literature that reflects and honors the lives of all young people.

How we define diversity:

We recognize all diverse experiences, including (but not limited to) LGBTQIA, people of color, gender diversity, people with disabilities*, and ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities."

Meet the Candidates: ALA President 2016–17; Library Journal, 4/6/15

Lisa Peet, Library Journal; Meet the Candidates: ALA President 2016–17:

"Voting for the American Library Association (ALA) 2016–17 presidential campaign has opened, and ALA members in good standing can cast their ballots through May 1. In order to offer voters some additional insight into the candidates’ opinions and plans, LJ has asked them to weigh in on some key issues facing the president-elect and general items of interest. The four candidates—Joseph Janes, associate professor and chair of the MLIS Program, University of Washington Information School, Seattle; James LaRue, CEO of LaRue & Associates, Castle Rock, CO; JP Porcaro, librarian for acquisitions and technological discovery at New Jersey City University Library, Jersey City, NJ; and Julie Todaro, dean of library services at Austin Community College, TX—have given their responses below. Full biographies of the candidates can be found on ALA’s Election Information page..."

2. How can ALA support diversity? How should ALA specifically work with REFORMA, CALA, BCALA? How should ALA work with We Need Diverse Books?"

Tech Leaders Call for Anti-Discrimination Laws to Protect Gays in all 50 States; New York Times, 4/1/15

Nick Wingfield, New York Times; Tech Leaders Call for Anti-Discrimination Laws to Protect Gays in all 50 States:

"Technology leaders are looking beyond an Indiana battle over gay rights that united them in the past week, and are calling on all states to enact anti-discrimination protections for lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

More than three dozen chief executives and other senior Silicon Valley leaders issued a joint statement on Wednesday, asking state legislatures to add sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes to their civil rights laws...

“Religious freedom, inclusion and diversity can coexist and everyone, including L.G.B.T. people and people of faith, should be protected under their states’ civil rights laws,” their statement reads. “No person should have to fear losing their job, or be denied service or housing because of who they are or whom they love.”"