In the wake of the Theta Tau videos, Syracuse University has implemented the SEM 100 seminar, a course that aims to promote a respectful campus community. The seminar is for first-year students who are required to meet once a week for five weeks to discuss topics related to diversity and inclusion.

While SEM 100 was successful in accomplishing the goals the university outlined and was deemed a success by SU, more should be done to continue the conversation about diversity and inclusion at SU.

“To me, teaching about diversity and inclusion is really about being able to understand and incorporate empathy into your life,” said Rebecca Ortiz, an assistant professor in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. “Really being able to understand that just because you have your perspective, somebody else may see the world differently, in part because they have different experiences and different backgrounds than you.”

The Office of Residence Life on campus is a great example of that. Resident advisers are required to complete Conversations About Race and Ethnicity as part of diversity and inclusion training. CARE is designed to have participants explore their racial identity, understand the experiences of others and identify social systems of oppression.

Expanding CARE is a tangible thing SU can do to maintain the momentum they have, following Theta Tau, in fostering a more comfortable and inclusive campus community.

This program has an established history of talking about topics such as privilege and racism and what that means for people of different backgrounds.

SEM 100 was already being planned before the release of the Theta Tau videos last spring, but that controversy accelerated its implementation.

Starting SEM 100, permanently expelling the Theta Tau chapter from campus and suspending students involved in the videos were great first steps by SU. But all of that should only mark the beginning of actions taken by the university. These examples show efforts of good faith, but to really accomplish and make a change in the overall culture at the university, more substantive actions are required.

SU should expand its CARE program to all students to better implement concepts of diversity and inclusion into the fabric of the university.

Bethanie Viele is a junior biology with a focus on environmental sciences major and religion minor. Her column appears bi-weekly. She can be reached at bmviele@syr.edu.

Published on February 14, 2019 at 12:19 am