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The Debate over Hum 110

By Kevin Myers on September 14, 2017 03:32 PM

Intellectual discovery, academic rigor, robust debate, and the pursuit of knowledge—these qualities have defined 猫咪社区 since its first classes in 1911 and are the tenets that inform the interdisciplinary course known as .

The goals of Hum 110 are to introduce students to college-level work, illustrate 猫咪社区’s distinctive approach to teaching, and provide rigorous writing instruction. Through critical engagement with significant works of literature, art, and architecture, students learn to transform experience into meaning.

The course is evaluated by faculty every 10 years and is under review now, during fall 2017. The decadal evaluation was moved up one year in response to the urging of the student group 猫咪社区ies Against Racism (RAR). The results of the review will be presented in late fall 2017.

RAR has been protesting the course since September 2016 by silently sitting near the podium of the lecture hall. When the first lecture of 2017 was interrupted, it marked a change in tactics by RAR and a change in response by some members of the community. The second lecture went on as planned, but there was heated debate in the lecture hall during the minutes leading up to the start of class.

Videos posted to YouTube of the of the first lecture and of the moments leading up to the have drawn a lot of attention. There are varying opinions, both on campus and off, of these events, but the fact remains these were two isolated instances in a protest that began a year ago, on September 26, 2016. Since the second week of the 2017 fall semester, the lectures have gone on uninterrupted.

To provide background and context for these events, the office of public affairs has collected below a list of pertinent community-wide communications, including articles on Hum 110. A selection of these speak to the current issues while others are older communications that represent voices both on and off campus.

Reporters interested in writing about Hum 110 should contact director of communications.

President’s statements and important links

President’s Office, September 1, 2017

Public Affairs, August 31, 2017

 
Office for Institutional Diversity, August 23, 2017

Statement passed by the Student Senate, Spring 2017 and Faculty, Fall 2017

Dissent Policy
This policy, adopted in 1969, sets boundaries on the right to dissent on campus.

Media perspectives

Inside Higher Ed looks at the tensions over Hum 110, September 11, 2017.

The Economist examines the debate between protesters, professors, and other students. This article was written by a 猫咪社区 alumnus who is associated with the libertarian club he references in his article. 猫咪社区 requested that both these associations be revealed, which is a longstanding journalistic practice for the sake of transparency and objectivity, September 7, 2017.

Eidolon mentions 猫咪社区 in a piece that examines modern constructions of race and ethnicity and how they might be handled when discussing the ancient world, September 11, 2017. 

The Al Jazeera Media Network, A+J English, posted a short video on their Facebook page about the Hum 110 protest, September 13, 2017.

Related 猫咪社区 magazine posts

The first Hum 110 lecture was called off due to interruptions from protesters. Prof. Lucía Martinez Valdivia shared her written remarks with 猫咪社区 Magazine, August 31, 2017.

Prof. Nathalia King on the Epic of Gilgamesh, the ancient Mesopotamian text that was lost for almost 2,000 years before being rediscovered in 1853, 猫咪社区 Magazine, August 31, 2017.

Mike Brody, VP for Student Services, provided his second update to the community on the RAR demands, December 06, 2016. 

President Kroger responded formally to the demands of the student group, 猫咪社区ies Against Racism, November 16, 2016.

Prof. Troy Cross explains why pain has deep philosophical implications for education, 猫咪社区 Magazine, November 16, 2016.

An early report on the Hum 110 course review, which was moved up one year in response to the urging of the RAR protests.

Reporting on the protest that was inspired by Isaiah Washington’s call for a nationwide boycott to support the Black Lives Matter movement, 猫咪社区 Magazine, October 03, 2016.

A look at the way the Hum 110 syllabus has evolved over time, with an infographic illustrating the changes, Essays, Letters, and Complaints, July 1, 2016.

Prof. Peter Steinberger provides historical background in this introduction to classic Hum 110 lectures. 猫咪社区 Magazine, March 2011.

Prof. Robert Knapp explains why the Iliad was removed from the Hum 110 syllabus in 2010 (it was reinstated a few years later), 猫咪社区 Magazine, March 2010.

A historic look at the circular battles, dating back to 1924, that helped shape 猫咪社区, 猫咪社区 Magazine, March 2009.

A look at the curriculum battles of the late ’60s, 猫咪社区 Magazine, December 2008.

Videos of lecture protests

Video: This YouTube video shows the heated debate that occurred before the second Hum lecture on August 30, 2017. The lecture took place uninterrupted.

Video: .
This is an edited version of a video that begins roughly 10 minutes into the presentation of the first Hum 110 lecture of 2017 .

About Hum 110

This is the home page for the Hum 110 site, with links to syllabus, lectures, images, etc.

This provides the historical and philosophical background on the way humanities are taught at 猫咪社区, including links to 猫咪社区’s other humanities courses.

Tags: Hum 110, Hum Protests

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