Penn State ‘teach-in’ to ask about progress a year after canceling Center for Racial Justice

It’s been nearly a full year since the abrupt cancellation of Penn State’s Center for Racial Justice — and many faculty members, students and community members remain dissatisfied with the university’s progress since then.

As a result, a group of concerned faculty members and students are hosting a teach-in titled, “One Year Later: Still No Racial Justice at Penn State - Why?” It will take place at 1:30 p.m. Thursday inside the HUB-Robeson Center’s 132 Flex Theater, and it will also be livestreamed via Zoom.

The teach-in, a similar event of which was also held in the spring, is designed to operate as a forum that invites discussion and offers different perspectives from different speakers. Although the overarching theme is racial justice, topics will range from hate speech on campus to responsibility to Native Americans to, yes, the cancellation of the Center for Racial Justice.

“It’s important because we want the campus community, as well as the university community and citizens of the commonwealth, to be aware of exactly the progress — or lack of progress — Penn State is making in regards to racial justice, anti-racism, diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging on campus,” said Gary King, a teach-in co-organizer and a professor of biobehavioral health and African American studies.

The previous teach-in, held in April, took place at the same time Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi held a “virtual conversation” about progress and plans related to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB). Teach-in organizers criticized the administration then for pivoting from a town hall and seemingly trying to “hide from the community,” as King previously put it.

Julio Palma, an associate professor of chemistry at Penn State Fayette, wondered aloud Wednesday what happened to the “continuous conversations” on racial justice that Bendapudi promised last November. He also found it ironic that Bendapudi previously wrote that inclusive speech is among the best responses to hate speech — and, yet, he charged the university with not doing enough to fight those hateful messages.

“What I’m thinking is, with these events, we’re trying to honor the commitment the university didn’t,” said Palma, who’s also co-organizing the teach-in.

When asked for comment Wednesday about the teach-in, a university spokesperson pointed to a Tuesday news release about progress on Bendapudi’s key goals, and a past news release about an August DEIB report.

Many issues related to racial justice started long before Bendapudi arrived in Happy Valley, but those issues came to a head when the university president announced in October 2022 that she was canceling the proposed Center for Racial Justice. The center was championed by the prior administration and was recommended by the Select Penn State Presidential Commission on Racism, Bias and Community Safety, in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by a Minneapolis police officer.

Michael Wade Smith, Bendapudi’s senior vice president and chief of staff, reiterated Tuesday during a faculty senate meeting that there were no plans to restore, or un-cancel, the Center for Racial Justice.

“They may say no today, but we’re asking, ‘What’s next?’” Palma said. “What’s the plan to address social and racial injustices? That was an important component, the Center for Racial Justice, but that was one initiative that was promised. Over the years, there have been many more recommendations. ... It’s important to keep advocating what we know is the right thing for the community and for the students.”

Penn State released a 317-page DEIB report in August, but critics said the report lacked specifics. The first bullet point under universitywide recommendations, for example, simply called for the development of a “comprehensive, cohesive equity-centered vision and plan.” A news release Tuesday also purported to show progress on Bendapudi’s key goals, including fostering DEIB, although the four remaining phases are expected to take five years.

King, Palma and others hoped to delve deeper Thursday into the university’s shortcomings when it comes to racial justice, along with emphasizing the importance of shared governance. Some faculty members said they felt unheard when it comes to those issues — and Thursday is an opportunity to change that.

Said King: “The teach-in is one way in which we’re able to present a different perspective and give different insight about these issues and to also encourage and pressure the university to do the right thing, and to live up to its obligations and to be forthright as it relates to making their efforts transparent.”