Inclusive Excellence and the Curriculum Timeline

Acknowledgements

With special thanks to David Tenorio ’17 and VP for Student Affairs Jon Jacobsen for their work to develop timelines capturing events related to this issue. Below is an attempt the combine multiple versions into one document. Please note that, where necessary, confidential information has been withheld, and in some cases we have removed the names of students to protect their privacy. To suggest changes or updates, please email [email]communications@hmc.edu[/email].

2015

November 2–4

• At the request of the 2015-2016 HMC Teaching and Learning Committee, consultants from the Center for Inquiry of Liberal Arts visit HMC with the intent of answering the question, “What can the TLC do, both as faculty themselves and for the larger HMC community, to support a true sense of achievement among students?”. They produce a 18-page report on their findings, “Learning at Mudd: Insight into the Student Academic Experience“, later named “The Wabash Report”.

2016

January

• Teaching and Learning Committee (TLC) receives report.

February 22

• TLC shares summary of report (“TLC Report Out”) with FEC & joint meeting to discuss report and next steps (ASHMC president is member of FEC). Decision is made to share full report with FEC.

February 23

• Full report is shared with FEC.

February 29

• FEC plans open forums on Wabash Report with faculty following March 10 faculty meeting.

March 4

• Wabash Report shared with faculty ahead of March 10 meeting.

March 10

• Faculty discussions over lunch. Lots of ideas generated. Expedites Core Review for 2017-18 and bringing in consultants earlier to help plan for the review.

July 15

• Harvey Mudd engineering student Tristan Witte ’18 died as a result of injuries sustained in a car accident. The HMC community creates a memorial website and an on-campus memorial service is planned for the fall.

September 26

• FEC Agenda includes discussion of Wabash Report and possible charge to Curriculum Committee. Process helps solidify plan for External Core Review in 2017-18 Academic Year and plan for interim site visit by external team to guide process.

November 18 & 22

• CCD Donnelly holds two informal faculty round table discussions on possible Core Revisions to address workload issues.

December 8

• The Harvey Mudd community learns of the death of the son of a beloved faculty member. Faculty, staff and students are invited to attend the memorial service later in December.

2017

January

• Board of Trustees Educational Planning Committee session on Faculty Planning Regarding Student Workload, including Wabash Report and Core Revisions. [ASHMC members attend each BOT session]

February 2

• Harvey Mudd student Willie Zuniga ’17 passes away from unknown causes. The HMC community creates a memorial website and an on-campus memorial services is planned for March 24.

February 10

• TLC shares draft “Learning at Mudd: Insight into student academic experience” document with FEC for proposed document to share widely with community to move towards action. Continued discussion leads TLC to make further changes to document before sharing more widely.

February 15-16

• Memorial services for Willie Zuniga ’17 in San Francisco. Harvey Mudd students and DSA staff members travel via bus to the service to grieve and support the family.

February 27

• FEC learns from ASHMC President that The Student Life newspaper has “leaked document” and wants to do story.

March 7

•  FEC shared TLC document “Wabash Report Summary—March 7, 2017” with students, staff, and faculty. Explains why did not intend to share Wabash Report due to confidentiality.

March 9

• A student from Scripps College is found dead in her room. Beloved by students across The Claremont Colleges, her death follows closely on the heels of Willie Zuniga’s death and is a shock to the community.

March 24

• TSL published article on Workload at Mudd and includes the Wabash Report: Harvey Mudd Addresses Workload: Leaked Report Advocates Reform. On the same day, the Harvey Mudd community holds a campus memorial celebrating the life of Willie Zuniga ’17.

March 27

• Dean of Faculty Jeff Groves emails an apology to the student body on behalf of himself, President Klawe, and Chair of the Faculty Patrick Little. He mentions the need for greater transparency moving forward and invited the students to an open forum to be held on March 29.
• An anonymous group of students posts flyers around academic buildings and at President Klawe’s personal residence. Some flyers contain more problematic quotes from the Wabash report, while others follow the format of a mock HMC acceptance letter.

March 28

• Members of six HMC student diversity organizations send an open letter to the students, faculty, and staff at Mudd with a response to the Wabash report along with a list of demands. These demands include:
  • Student input and direct involvement in revision of the core curriculum
  • Transparency with efforts to revise the curriculum and address the workload, about the budgets for departments that directly impact student life on campus such as the Division of Student Affairs (DSA), Office of Health & Wellness (OHW), and the Office of Institutional Diversity (OID), and about the demographics of students who leave Mudd without graduating
  • Acknowledgement of and immediate actions for addressing prejudice by the faculty against marginalized students
  • Involvement of OID in the hiring process for new faculty
• Professor and Faculty Executive Committee Chair Patrick Little emails the student body on behalf of the Faculty Executive Committee. Among other things, he affirms their belief that every Mudder deserves to be at Mudd and rejecting any notion that Mudd has “lowered its standards”.

March 29

• An open forum in the Platt Living Room is held to discuss the Wabash report.

March 30

• 11:30 AM: Students from Black Lives at Mudd (BLAM) organize a rally and walk-out at Mudd, with the aim of “making known the depth of anti-Blackness at Mudd (especially in relation to certain faculty & departments), and amplifying the voices of those who wish to speak candidly on unpleasant faculty interactions”.

March 31

• TSL releases an article, “In Wake of Wabash Report, Mudd Students Demand Immediate Action”, covering the rally and walk-out.
• Dean of Faculty Jeff Groves emails students, faculty and staff in response to both the forum and the rally, outlining the next steps to come.

April 12

• 2:20 AM: Student leaders release another list of demands concerning a lack of institutional support for the mental health of its students.
• 12:30 PM: Students organize a sit-in in front of the DSA office, blocking entry to the doors until their demands are met.
• 3:30 PM: After attempting to address the students twice, President Klawe leaves and calls an emergency President’s Cabinet meeting.
• 5:25 PM: After an emergency President’s Cabinet meeting, Dean Jacobsen emails the student body on their behalf outlining responses following the meeting.
• 7:22 PM: Dean Jacobsen sends out a follow-up email promising to advocate for the students’ behalf.
• 7:39 PM: The protest officially ends.

April 13

• 5:15 PM: The Faculty Executive Committee holds a forum on shared governance, promotion and tenure, and other faculty processes.
• 7:10 PM: Professor Patrick Little, Chair of the Faculty, announces that as the result of an emergency faculty meeting, the faculty and President Klawe have agreed to the cancellation of classes on Monday and Tuesday, April 17–18, and to commit to significantly reducing workload for students for the rest of the semester.

April 14

• TSL releases an article, “HMC Administration Addresses Student Demands After Sit-In”, covering the sit-in and administrative response.
• President Klawe sends an email to all current parents informing them about the College’s decision to cancel classes.

April 17-18

• 1:00 PM (April 17): Faculty participate in a workshop led by Daryl Smith, a renowned scholar on diversity in higher education who also taught for many years at Claremont Graduate University. The topic for the workshop is “Mission, Mattering, Multipllicity: Creating Health and Diverse Communities that Work in Tumultuous Times.”
• Although classes are cancelled, faculty invite students and staff to participate in a variety of activities and learning opportunities on campus to relax, reconnect and help heal the community.

April 18

• Inside Higher Ed releases an article about the events at Mudd, “Ground to a Halt”, which includes an phone interview with President Klawe. The same article is republished in Business Insider.

April 19

• President Klawe sends an email to students, with a copy to faculty and staff, updating them on the President’s Cabinet proposal for changes to health, wellness and inclusion for 2017–2018.
• A dinner is scheduled with students to get their feedback on the proposal. Students also are encouraged to share feedback via email to President Klawe or any member of the President’s Cabinet.

April 20

• President’s Cabinet hosts a dinner with students to discuss the Cabinet Proposal regarding additional health, wellness and inclusion resources. Notes from the student dinner this session are available.

April 24

• The Faculty Executive Committee hosted a forum for students, faculty and staff on issues affecting students from marginalized groups.
• The College sent emails to alumni and current parents announcing the launch of this website.

May 5

• Dean Jon Jacobsen sends an email to all students asking for additional feedback on the proposal for increased emotional health and wellness support for 2017–18.

For additional details following May 2017, please see the Announcements section of this site.