EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION STATEMENT

As an instructor committed to anti-racist and decolonial teaching practices, I continuously work to foster inclusivity within both the curriculum and the classroom community. I value a learning environment that is respectful yet challenging, one that acknowledges the biases we all hold and actively works to unravel systemic oppression through open and critical dialogue. Alongside my students, I am continually learning and striving to be an ally and advocate for change. In my Social Spaces course at the University of Michigan’s Stamps School of Art & Design, we partnered with the Center for Independent Living in Ann Arbor (CIL) to address accessibility needs within our own institution. Although I had taught this class every semester, this was the first time we examined our immediate community and its gaps in mutual support and inclusion.

Carmen Papalia was one of the central artists who inspired our project. Papalia refers to himself as a non-visual learner (as opposed to “blind,” which carries negative connotations). His manifesto for museums and institutions, Open Access, proposes a rethinking of the terms on which all of us care for and coexist with one another. “It’s an approach that isn’t only relevant to a group of people with atypical bodies or minds or behaviour, but to anybody who is living in relation to other people.”[1] He broadly defines disabling conditions as those that “limit one's agency and potential to thrive.” Papalia’s manifesto for inclusivity speaks to me in the context of the Social Spaces class project, and my current work as Assistant Professor in the Integrative Arts program at York University. 

Here are a few specific examples of how I integrate diversity, equity and inclusion into my classroom so that every student has the potential to thrive:

  1. I intentionally shift the curriculum away from a Eurocentric, white male-dominated framework. This means including a broad range of BIPOC, 2SLGBTQI+, indigenous, immigrant, feminist, and non-Western examples in my syllabi. In 2018, I received a fellowship from the Center for Learning and Teaching at the University of Michigan to rewrite my Live Art Survey course syllabus to move beyond the Western canon. I was also awarded Anti-Racist Pedagogy grants for two consecutive years to invite visiting artists who are racialized, queer, transgender, female, immigrant, disabled, and/or otherwise systemically oppressed and underrepresented in mainstream discourse. This focus continues in my role as Assistant Professor of Integrative Arts at York University, where I regularly allocate course and program funds to invite 2-4 guest artists each semester for class visits or public presentations. Artists I have recently invited include Jen Delos Reyes, Myrtle Sodhi, Julius Poncelet Manapull, Rah Eleh, Hannah Doucet, Shimul Chowdhury, Lisa Jarrett, Sheetal Prajapati, Patty Gone, Erma Fiend, Raj Brueggemann, Cherry Wood, Miwa Matreyek, Petra Kuppers, Shana Moulton, and Athi Patra-Ruga.

  2. I recognize that my students come from different backgrounds and face distinct challenges that require individualized attention and support. At the beginning of each semester, I send out a survey to learn about their circumstances. I gather general information such as art backgrounds and gender pronouns, in addition to information about work responsibilities, access to technology and quiet study space, and other potential barriers to learning. Some students have official accommodations through Student Accessibility Services, while others face situations that are not easily diagnosed or formally recognized. My goal as an instructor is to ensure that all students feel seen, heard, and supported. I strive to offer reasonable flexibility based on individual needs, emphasizing that consistent communication is essential. I also hold regular one-on-one meetings outside of class to offer additional guidance and support.

  3. I don’t shy away from engaging with challenging topics in the classroom. This is especially central to my Ethics in the Arts course at York University, which examines identity, politics, ableism, privilege, feminist theory, systemic racism, capitalism, colonialism, and the ethics of being an artist in a complex world. I ensure that every student has the opportunity to speak and be heard, supported by a shared set of ground rules that we establish collectively at the beginning of the semester. 

In the report from my second Lecturer Review at the Stamps School of Art & Design in 2023 (included in full in my teaching dossier), the committee offered the following feedback:

“The committee was particularly impressed by [Emilia’s] sophisticated inclusive teaching methodology, clear and thoughtful assignment scaffolding, and ability to help community building among students, which is particularly valuable at some of the intro level courses that she teaches. Her teaching methodology combines elements of vulnerability (including her own vulnerability) with a great sense of humor, which is a very powerful and engaging approach that effectively opens up room for everybody to participate. She eloquently addresses the ethics of representation in all aspects of her teaching such as by selecting work examples from a diverse set of creatives/studios or by inviting visiting artists to represent a multitude of diverse perspectives in the classroom.” 

My Social Spaces class at the University of Michigan was a clear example of these values in practice. What began as an investigation into disability rights expanded into broader discussions of intersectionality, person-first vs. identity-first language, systemic oppression, and the intrinsic biases that we all must work to recognize and dismantle. These conversations grew out of the ground rules we established as a class; moments in which students shared their perspectives openly and vulnerability took center stage. The goal was never unanimous agreement, but rather a shared commitment to listening, reflection, and respectful engagement across difference. As an instructor and facilitator, I guide these exchanges to ensure that quieter voices are heard and that dialogue remains central to our collective learning, which is especially important in this current moment of heightened anti-DEI backlash.  

[1]  An Accessibility Manifesto for the Arts, Carmen Papalia, January 2, 2018, Canadian Art