Message from Provost Cyril Clarke: Conversations About Election Outcomes

Dear colleagues,

The general election tomorrow provides yet another opportunity to engage in and celebrate our democracy. As an immigrant to the United States and as a citizen, I value highly the legacy of free and fair elections in our nation, and I encourage you to participate.

In doing so, I recognize that the presidential campaigns have expressed divergent views about many aspects of our nation’s past, its current circumstances, and our aspirations for the future. I am not a historian, but I believe nevertheless that it is accurate to remind ourselves that this election is not the first in which our communities are deeply divided. And I anticipate that when the election results are confirmed, there will be those who will be satisfied with the outcome and others who will be deeply distressed. However, I am confident that irrespective of who wins or loses, both our country and our university will continue to commit to building a prosperous future. Virginia Tech will continue to engage in important work in service across the political divide.

One of the cornerstones of Virginia Tech’s Principles of Community is a commitment to create learning and growth opportunities and to affirm the right of each person to express thoughts and opinions. With that in mind, instructors and mentors should feel free within the context of their courses and learning goals to facilitate discussions that will enable processing of election results and critical thinking. Please be aware that instructional faculty and graduate students are accountable for the management of the learning environment, and that I have confidence in your ability to facilitate conversions in support of active listening and respectful dialogue.

Listed below are a number of resources to assist you in navigating difficult conversations in the classroom. As we move forward and consider these discussions, it is important that mutual respect and constructive dialogue remain central to our efforts to provide a supportive and collaborative learning environment for all of our students.

Thank you for your continued commitment to these principles and to ensuring every voice and viewpoint is valued throughout our diverse and inclusive campus community.

Cyril 

Resources:

• Navigating Difficult Conversations in the Classroom – CETL 
• Establishing a norm of inclusion in your class – OID 
• Inclusive Pedagogy – OID 
• Communicate more effectively with students on Canvas – TLOS 
• Inquiry and Discourse Toolkit – Georgetown University 
• National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation

Recent articles:

• Professors should discuss elections in class (opinion) – Inside Higher Ed 
• The U.S. Can Take a Tough Election – Wall Street Journal