(The Beacon)
By Nastacia Voisin, Staff Writer voisin15@up.edu
After continuing controversy over the absence of sexual orientation in the Nondiscrimination Policy, the Ad Hoc Presidential Advisory Committees on Inclusion (PACI) hosted listening sessions for faculty, staff and students Tuesday and Wednesday. The committees heard testimony on a wide range of topics from religion to ethnic and racial discrimination, as well as concerns about community members with disabilities.
Students voiced distress about the lack of sensitivity towards all kinds of diversity and how certain policy changes - such as the RA hiring process and changes to Theology 101 - are stifling inclusion efforts. Students want the UP administration to focus on inclusion and open more communication channels between students and decision-makers.
Some students suggested that groups like CPB, ASUP, RAs, sport teams and faculty get more involved with diversity training. The diversity of UP's curriculum was also brought up, and students asked that theology classes include world religions. Other students thought UP should be more accessible to disabled community members.
The issue of the Nondiscrimination Policy was the focus of the staff and faculty sessions. Personal opinions, moving anecdotes and recommendations were shared by participants.
Nick McRee, a sociology professor, attended the faculty session on Wednesday and said the meeting created an environment where people could share views they wouldn't otherwise.
"The environment felt comfortable," McRee said. "People were sharing very personal feelings and stories, and the reception was uniformly supportive and positive."
This feeling of safe dialogue is the heart of the PACI listening committee's mission.
Paul Myers, health center director and committee chair, explained that the PACI listening sessions are part of an effort to create a channel through which the UP community can express its opinions and concerns.
"The purpose of these listening sessions is to create a space where people of all groups can bring forth their experiences," Myers said. "It's a pursuit of the truth. We're asking, 'What can we do to make the University of Portland better?'"
Originally, PACI listening sessions were slated to commence in fall 2012 but had been postponed until rising concern about the Nondiscrimination Policy. Eleven committee members have been directly appointed by the president's office to facilitate the sessions.
According to Myers, the PACI listening sessions have been structured to balance transparency with safety. The faculty and staff sessions were closed to students and the media, and the Beacon was requested to not publish names, photos or quotes from the student listening sessions.
"It's important that we be transparent, but people might feel that they will be subject to uncontrolled consequences if they speak their minds," Myers said. "We've decided to err on the side of creating a secure space for people."
The committee identified faculty and staff as the most vulnerable section of the UP community. According to committee members, ambiguity about UP's official stance on sexual orientation is the primary source of fear. The Nondiscrimination Policy does not include sexual orientation. The Statement on Inclusion does, but it is not legally binding.
McRee said the two separate policies on inclusion have made people wary.
"Having multiple statements muddies the waters," said McRee. "The communication isn't as open as I'd like."
Elayne Shapiro, communication studies professor and committee member, agreed that the element of confidentiality at the hearings helped people speak freely.
"It was very open, it was very trusting, it was very emotional," Shapiro said.
The committee has been open to other forms of input, from private letters to anonymous survey results. About 30 submissions from faculty, staff and alumni have been submitted electronically already. A final PACI listening session for students will be held on Thursday at 5:00 p.m. in the Buckley Center Auditorium, but community input will still be welcomed through other channels.
So far the PACI listening sessions have reaped encouraging responses. About 90 people -staff, students and faculty - have attended the sessions so far.
There is a general sense that at the listening sessions are powerful ways of legitimizing the concerns of the UP community.
"The creation of the committees essentially communicates that these issues are worth talking about," McRee said. "The University is taking us seriously, and it's taking its commitment to the inclusion policy seriously."
The basic model of the sessions is to gather community feedback which will be organized by the committee members. Along with an examination of policy, law, Holy Cross doctrine, Catholic documents and the attitudes of other universities, the feedback would be presented along with recommendations to Beauchamp. The president is expected to share these recommendations with his leadership cabinet, and possibly to the Board of Regents.
"I think this is a momentous time in the University's history, and I think it's wonderful the kinds of feedback we've been hearing," Myers said.
