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Cultural Diversity Flag Criteria

The following criterion was approved in September 2022 by Faculty Council.

To satisfy the Cultural Diversity in the United States flag, a course must focus on the cultural experiences, perspectives, and/or practices of marginalized groups in the United States. In order to help students understand the complexity and diversity within these groups, as well as how culture works within a social and political context, courses must engage students in thinking critically about at least three of the following: gender identity/expression, race, ethnicity, indigeneity, disability, sexuality, religion, nationality, language, and/or class. Courses must include opportunities for students to reflect critically on the impact of the course material on our lives and communities.

At least half of the course grade must be based on study of and reflection on these contextualized cultural experiences.

Interpretation

The following interpretation was developed by the faculty committee that oversees the Cultural Diversity Flag and was approved by the Undergraduate Studies Advisory Committee.

The purpose of the Cultural Diversity in the United States flag is for students to study and reflect on the cultural experiences of marginalized groups in the United States. In order to highlight the varied and complex cultural experiences of marginalized groups, courses carrying the Cultural Diversity in the United States flag should, whenever possible, include texts (broadly construed) created by members of those cultural groups, in their own voices, and should reflect diverse perspectives within those groups.

Critical reflection is key to helping students analyze the work that culture does in the United States and in their own lives. By critical reflection, the committee means a process of analyzing the forces – social, political, historical, and/or economic – that have shaped students’ own cultural experiences, those of the groups they are studying, and those of others in their communities.

Instructors should structure and guide the reflection process, but students should participate in an active process of critical reflection that asks them to analyze and articulate how what they learn in the course is affecting their understanding of their own cultural experiences and those of the groups they are learning about in the course. Depending on the course content, some suggestions for this kind of critical reflection may include:

  • Written activities, either formal or informal, that consider beliefs or assumptions that may have been challenged or refined by a reading or assignment
  • Collaborative inquiry such as perspective sharing or class discussions
  • Creative projects – like making a podcast, drawing a comic, writing an autobiography, attending a performance, or exploring a place – with a reflective component

Learning Objectives

The faculty committee that oversees the Cultural Diversity Flag has also developed a set of learning objectives, or goals for what students will learn to do in these courses. These learning objectives can be adapted to your course and help communicate course structure and goals to your students.

Student Feedback

We administer end-of-semester surveys to students enrolled in courses that carry a Cultural Diversity Flag. Here’s a snapshot of their feedback from our fall 2019 survey.

Questions?

Are you a student with questions about the Cultural Diversity Flag? Please contact the Core and Flags Student Program Coordinator for advising and petitions support.

Are you an instructor with questions about the Cultural Diversity Flag? Please contact Dr. Brooke Rich, Senior Academic Program Coordinator for the Cultural Diversity Flag.