Boise State pulls, then reinstates diversity class after students ‘humiliated and degraded’
Boise State University suspended, then reinstated, a diversity class after students were reportedly “humiliated and degraded.”
The school announced that it would cancel all sections of UF 200, “Foundations of Ethics and Diversity,” on March 16.
“We have been made aware of a series of concerns, culminating in allegations that a student or students have been humiliated and degraded in class on our campus for their beliefs and values,” wrote President Marlene Tromp in an email to the student body obtained by Campus Reform. “This is never acceptable; it is not what Boise State stands for; and we will not tolerate this behavior.”
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Tromp added that “Boise State University is committed to ensuring that each and every one of our students is treated with respect and that all have the right to hold and to voice their own personal and political beliefs.” She added that the campus is “richer and learning is made more effective because people of all backgrounds and beliefs are invited to meet, exchange ideas, and learn together.”
Accordingly, Tromp announced that the university “must suspend UF 200.” Students will be able to submit complaints and reports of bias through a midterm evaluation.
However, the university announced on March 24 that the course would immediately resume.
“This decision enables students to continue their education while the investigation into serious allegations continues,” said Boise State University Interim Provost Tony Roark. “The goal of suspending these courses was to enable the investigation to begin and ensure that this course lives up to our standard of mutual respect for faculty and students.”
Boise State University’s website says that UF 200 is meant to “help students investigate how we practice our ethics together as engaged citizens creating an inclusive community.”
Students are able to choose from a menu of 34 different emphases — from EthDiv & Food in the US, which investigates “how the concepts of ethics, diversity and human rights apply to the specific issue of food access, quality, safety and production,” to “EthDiv & Intersectionality,” which explores how “power and privilege impact the way we live our lives.”
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UF 200 is a “foundations requirement,” required for students without core certification from another college or university.
In the past weeks, state legislators worked to defund colleges pursuing social justice agendas, including Boise State University.
In a recent Facebook video, state Rep. Priscilla Giddings (R-ID) noted that many universities are promoting “blatant racism in their curriculum.”
“It’s got to be rooted out, and the only way we can do it is through their budget,” she said.
Indeed, new legislation removed $409,000 from Boise State University’s budget in response to their pursuit of “social justice ideology.” The budget has not yet been passed.
Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @BenZeisloft