Diversity Fellows Program

Description

The Diversity Fellows Program is an annual, cohort-based program. This program invites participants to critically reflect upon their pedagogical approaches, instructional/assessment decisions and how social realities and futures are related to their courses.

Fellows of this program will work to:

• critically examine how their disciplines and courses operate in discourse with social norms, narratives, and practices;
• explore their notions of curriculum
• implement a specific, equity-oriented pedagogical shift; and
• (specific to the Spring/Fall 2025 cycle) collaboratively unpack and improve their pedagogical practices specific to a community-based course they teach

Spring/Fall 2025 Cycle

The Spring/Fall 2025 cycle will be a pilot designed to provide a collaborative space for faculty who have a demonstrable and active record of teaching courses expressly designed to make experiential learning with, within and for local communities a central feature of student learning. The focal course faculty use as the basis of work done during the grant cycle should be grounded in community-based learning which shares goals with but is distinct from service learning, community service and the engagement of community members as clients or subjects. Instead, community-based learning engages local individuals as stakeholders, knowledgeable collaborators, and agential participants or leaders in the future of their community.

Each Fellow will develop goals unique to their chosen focal course and a pedagogical action plan based on intertwining sociocultural knowledge, course content, industry-based knowledge, and field-based pedagogical practices that directly connect students and community partners.

Fellows will collaboratively identify and develop an improvement plan for the instructional strategies they use to facilitate students’ community-based learning. Together, grant recipients will explore topics such as:

• how to align the learning that takes place on campus and in communities;
• notions of power within community-based learning;
• teaching critical thinking skills in connection to effectively and ethically working with community partners;
• recognizing and respecting community members’ agency; and
• balancing student learning with the strengths, needs, input, realities and pursuits of more equitable futures local community members bring into the learning process.

Calendar

Note: Due dates that fall on a weekend or holiday will be deferred to the following business day.

December 2025

The Diversity Fellows Program is announced; Google Form applications are opened

February 24, 2025

Final day to submit application

By March 27, 2025

Applications will be reviewed and selected

March 27, 2025

Cohort members receive invitations to participate

During the Spring 2025 Semester

First Cohort Meeting

May 13 - 14, 2025

Two-day workshop to take place

Between May 15, 2025 and December 8, 2025

Two consultation meetings with Dr. Tuesda Roberts

During the Fall 2025 Semester

Second Cohort Meeting

Before December 2025

Cohort members participate in four total Sustained Engagement meetings

December 2025

Cohort members submit a final report

Stipend

Fellows will be compensated $1,000:

• $700 to be dispersed after completing the May workshop, and
• $300 to be dispersed at the conclusion of the fall 2025 semester, pending completion of all requirements, including attending cohort meetings, consultation meetings with Tuesda Roberts, and developing a workshop for the Emerson faculty.

Note: Stipends are processed as supplemental compensation and are subject to applicable payroll taxes.

Eligibility

Eligibility to be a part of the Diversity Fellows Program is based on:

• status as a full-time faculty member, or an affiliated faculty member (Step 2 or above);
• being scheduled to teach the focal, community-based course in the Fall 2025 semester;
• the ability to commit to participate in the following:
  • four Sustained Engagement meetings;
    • Cohort Meeting- spring 2025
    • Cohort Meeting- fall 2025
    • Two consultation meetings with Tuesda Roberts- between May 15, 2024 and December 8, 2025
  • a two-day workshop in May;
  • the submission of a finalized pedagogical plan;
  • the creation and facilitation of a cohort-designed workshop for faculty; and
  • the completion of a final report survey

Criteria & Considerations

Faculty members ideally situated to become Fellows are:

• poised to use sociocultural knowledge to transform their pedagogical practices within a Fall 2025 semester course they will teach;
• willing to engage in sustained professional growth via individual and cooperative engagement; and
• committed to enhancing students’ learning experiences by meaningfully integrating “depth and diversity” into the communication and creative arts curriculum

Application Process

Eligible applicants may complete the application via Google Forms. Completed Google Form applications must be submitted by the date listed in the calendar above.

Applicants should be able to demonstrate how their current community-based pedagogical decisions are designed to support students’ ability to

1. learn content in context,
2. apply their professional and intellectual skills sets to contribute to real-world solutions and
3. carefully reflect on what it means to both learn and act in concert with community partners.

Review and Selection of Applications

Evaluation Criteria

The strength and value of cohort-based programs, in part, is derived from having a group of individuals whose backgrounds, interests, and perspectives are diverse, especially when those qualities work in complementary ways that promote dialog and growth. As such, reviewers will consider the following factors when constructing each year’s cohort:

• Thoughtfulness of responses to the application form, including the clarity of instructional practices currently in use that align with community-based pedagogy;
• Faculty members’ clear descriptions of the connections they seek to make between their course, equity, local communities and/or social justice; and
• The importance of creating a cohesive cohort, representative of varying interests and pedagogical aims

Selection of Applications

Applications submitted by the deadline will be reviewed by Dr. Tuesda Roberts. A recommended list of cohort members will then be shared for feedback with the Vice Provost for Internationalization and Equity, the Vice President for Equity and Social Justice, the Assistant Provost for Faculty Affairs, and the Provost.

Final decisions will be made by Dr. Tuesda Roberts.

Contact

For questions regarding this program, please email DFP [at] emerson.edu (DFP[at]emerson[dot]edu) to reach Dr. Tuesda Roberts, Director for Faculty Development and Diversity.