DEADLINE EXTENDED TO Thursday, April 25!
Title: BMCC-Hunter ABI Summer 2024 Faculty Seminar Series, Open to all Levels
Theme: Asian American Students in the City: Considerations for the CUNY Classroom and Beyond
Hosted by the BMCC-Hunter Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI) Bridge Initiative
This Series will be Hybrid (2 in-person meetings, and 3 meetings on Zoom).
Asian American students make up the largest racial demographic at Hunter College (~33%) and the third largest racial demographic at BMCC (~15%). Representing a rich diversity of ethnic, religious, sociopolitical, economic, and diasporic communities, Asian American CUNY students are entering classrooms with a wide array of stressors, needs, strengths, and community identities. As instructors, how can we approach our teaching with attention to our Asian American students’ intersecting identities, sense of purpose, and belonging? How can we engage our students with cultural humility, in locating who we are in the classroom, as well as what our purpose might be as instructors?
This June, the BMCC-Hunter AANAPISI Bridge Initiative (ABI) invites BMCC and Hunter colleagues from all disciplines to join us for a hybrid seminar series focusing on Asian American students’ sense of purpose and belonging, and racial/cultural experiences throughout college. We will center our discussion of Asian American students at our schools, including their ethnic and religious diversity, their mental health needs, and their classroom experiences. We position these conversations as a springboard for broader reflections on pedagogy and justice-oriented teaching, especially in considering BIPOC students, first-generation college goers, transfer students, and working class student experiences.
This 4-session seminar begins by focusing on Asian American identities in the U.S. and accompanying college experiences. We will also focus on Asian American racial, ethnic and immigrant experiences; Asian American mental health and wellness; and, pedagogical interventions for centering purpose and classroom engagement as informed by Asian American Studies. Through guided discussions, guest speakers, and small group discussions, participants will learn, discuss, and reflect on their own and their students’ experiences, as well as how they can support their students through various teaching interventions that consider identity, race, purpose, and belonging.
Then, as a final project, participants will apply what they learned by creating and sharing their own teaching innovation (e.g. class activity, assignment/project, teaching tool, etc) for a course they plan to teach in Fall 2024 or later. Our goal is that these projects incorporate racial identity, purpose, and/or belonging, and consider a nuanced understanding of our CUNY classroom ecosystems. Each meeting will include a small-groups brainstorming/reflection session to discuss participants’ enhancements, and how they might practically apply the day’s topics to their teaching practice. Then, at the end of the seminar series, participants will submit their projects and post it on our FSS Resources Website.
Thus, this seminar asks us how to catalyze our Asian American and other students’ sense of connection to our course content, to their multiple identities, and to each other through meaningful teaching strategies and reflections. Our approach draws from the experiences of the Hunter College AANAPISI Project (HCAP), which has developed a model of identity affirmation, personal motivation, and community building that centers Asian American students.
Stipend: Participants who attend all sessions and complete a teaching innovation for a future course will receive a stipend of $500.
Who is eligible to apply?
This seminar is open to all part-time/adjunct and full-time faculty at BMCC and/or Hunter College. All applicants should demonstrate an interest and previous reflections exploring racial justice in the classroom. You do not have to be assigned to teach in Fall 2024, but you should plan to work on a course and teaching activities that you expect to teach at Hunter or BMCC in the future.
Why should I participate?
The BMCC-Hunter ABI Faculty Seminar Series offers busy faculty a jump-start in creating or re-creating activities and materials for future courses. More specifically, faculty will:
1) develop deeper understanding of the stressors and backgrounds of Asian American and other students at their CUNY institution;
2) learn evidence-based teaching practices for supporting Asian American students and other students of Color;
3) practice new tools that improve learning outcomes and cultivate belonging and motivation within their classroom;
4) engage in professional development with their colleagues across disciplines and institutions.
When is it, Where is it, and how will it work?
We will meet a total of six times, twice in person and three times on Zoom.
Kickoff and Introduction: Friday 5/31 from 12pm-1:30pm on Zoom
- Session 1: Tuesday 6/18, 12:30-3:30pm, In-Person at Hunter College (Lunch provided)
- Session 2: Friday 6/21, 1-3:30pm, on Zoom
- Session 3: Tuesday 6/25, 1-3:30pm, on Zoom
- Session 4: Friday 6/28, 12:30-3:30pm, In-Person at Borough of Manhattan Community College (Lunch provided)
- Early November TBD: Mid-semester Reunion and Check-In (Online)
What am I expected to do?
Seminar Participants will be expected to:
- Identify and reflect on various Asian American and other student experiences in the classroom, especially with respect to differences in racial and cultural experience, immigration stress, and financial need;
- Reflect on one’s own racial and cultural background, as it relates to identity and purpose as an instructor;
- Create/design a classroom project for a specified course that incorporates Asian American students’ sense of purpose, culturally relevant pedagogies, and racial/cultural identities;
- Participate in small-group discussions, provide/receive feedback for incorporating student experiences into the classroom;
- Attend all 4 seminar sessions in June, an introductory Kick-Off Session in May, and a Reunion Session in November.
How do I apply?
To apply, complete the form here: https://forms.gle/YG7jeBeUiDXUdYYK6
The deadline to apply is Thursday, April 25, 2024. We will accept up to 25 participants for this seminar. We hope to create a cohort from a diversity of disciplines, teaching experiences, and a mix of part-time and full-time faculty. We will be offering more seminar opportunities in the Winter and Summer as part of a 5-year grant.
Please email Marcia Liu at Hunter (ML2138@hunter.cuny.edu) or the AANAPISI Bridge Initiative at BMCC (abi@bmcc.cuny.edu) if you have questions.
Who is organizing the BMCC-Hunter ABI Faculty Seminar Series?
This seminar series is part of the BMCC-Hunter AANAPISI Bridge Initiative (ABI), a collaborative program focused on high-need AAPI college students. The program is funded by a five-year U.S. Department of Education / Minority-Serving Institution (MSI) / Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI) Title III Part A Cooperative grant. This work builds from the Hunter College AANAPISI Project (HCAP), a program also supported by AANAPISI grant funding. Our work conceptualizes the student experience as essentially motivated by personal identity, including racial and cultural identity, as well as students’ sense of purpose and meaning. The BMCC-Hunter AANAPISI Bridge Initiative seeks to foster a greater sense of belonging for the BMCC and Hunter AAPI student community, while increasing understanding of AAPI student needs amongst faculty and staff at both colleges.
Faculty Seminar Series Planning Committee
Marcia Liu, Asian American Studies (Hunter), HCAP Mental Health Specialist and FSS Co-Facilitator
Gabriela Fullon, Asian American Studies (Hunter), HCAP Mental Health Outreach Coordinator and FSS Co-Facilitator
Paul McPherron, English (Hunter), HCAP Principal Investigator, and FSS Co-Facilitator
Gina Cherry, Center for Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship (CETLS) Director, BMCC
