FAQ

What is the Race and Social Justice Institute in the time of COVID-19?

The Race and Social Justice Institute is a structured set of learning opportunities to engage doctoral students in the intellectual and creative work in decolonizing educational space and building toward educational justice.

What ways can I participate? and what is expected of me?

You can participate by enrolling in a short course, attending dije events or particular ES Colloquium events. Depending on your course load, you may wish to fully engage through short course intensives, which will require full attendance and deep reading for discussions. You can also participate by supporting different events in the SOE community and reflecting on these experiences and posting on our blog/vlog or submitting a reflective artifact to an e-Portfolio. All participants (both full and peripheral) are expected to keep an e-Portfolio for the Institute. 

What is the mini-grant competition?

In December, students who wish to continue working or putting into practice their experiences in the fall can apply for funding through Anti-racist Research Mini-Grant Program sponsored by the dije Office. The Anti-racist Research Program supports education research projects and scholarship that will contribute to the improvement of education through an anti-racist lens. This mini-grant will fund research that advances the SOE community’s understanding of anti-racist praxis and its ability to help reimagine an anti-racist community and environment in the SOE.  Direct grants will be made to students totaling $10,000 in amounts ranging from $500-$2500. Eligibility is contingent on participation in Institute and sponsored events. The mini-grant program welcomes students who are dissertating to first-year students, who wish to work on a project. All projects must include an advisor and any mini-grants above $500 must be conducted in student groups.

Outside of the short courses what other events can I attend?

There will also be a variety of events sponsored by the Educational Studies department and the dije Office. A tentative schedule of these events are listed here.

Can I get course credit for participating in the Institute? and how do I become eligible for the mini-grant? 

Yes, you can receive course credit for participating in the Institute. Different events accrue different points and have different requirements. To earn one-course credit, you must accumulate 5 points. To earn two-course credits, you must accumulate 8 points, and for three course credits, you must accumulate 10 course points. 

To be eligible for the mini-grant, you must accumulate 8 points.

Please note that you may also enroll in a special topics course that focuses on aspects of race and social justice to earn points toward mini-grant eligibility; however, those points will not be counted toward earning course-credits. Please contact us if you have a question about whether a course qualifies.

See the table below for ways to earn course credit and points toward the mini-grant.

For programs centered on justice, why a point-system and count participation in such a technocratic way? In other words, why not dissociate the Institute from a point system? 

While the purpose of this Institute is to engage in the intellectual, emotional, and interpersonal work of social justice, we are doing so inside of institutional space. There is power in being inside of the institution that allows for allocation of books, the invitation of speakers, and the utilization of technological resources, etc. Access to this power and platform also means that we play inside of the institutional rules and find creative but legitimate ways to create accountability. The collective hope is that there are flexible ways for you to read yourself into the Institute and engage in ways that are meaningful to you.

Furthermore, we fundamentally believe that in order to be awarded funds toward anti-racism and educational justice you must be engaging in the intellectual work of seeking theoretical and conceptual clarity and embedding oneself within histories and the lived-experiences of people across various differences.  We wish to support students who have been and continue to be invested in coursework and events centered around racism and educational justice.