Shockley1

AlexanderShockley
Dr.MaryMiles
English138T
13April2015
DearChairAnsariandSenatorsofThePennsylvaniaStateUniversityFacultySenate,
Ifirstwanttothankyoufortakingthetimetoreadmyletter.IamAlexander
Shockley,acurrentfreshmanatPennStatemajoringinHospitalityManagementand
Spanish.IamalsotheRepresentativefortheCollegeofHealthandHumanDevelopment
intheUniversityParkUndergraduateAssociation(UPUA).Today,Iamwritingtoyou
onbehalfofalluniversitystudentsinordertoaddresstheirconcerns.
Currently,weareinatimeofneed.PennStateisaunique,diversecommunity
wherestudentsfromacrosstheworldjointogethertoachieveacommongoalto
becomeeducated.Alongourpathstoacademicandscholarlyknowledge,weembrace
adventure,overcomehurdles,andengageinactivitiesofwhichwebenefitandlearn.Yet
whilewetakeonthisambitiousjourney,westrugglethroughhardshipsanddecision
making.Comingtoacollegeoruniversityasayoungadultisnosimplefeat;weare
facedwithnewfoundfreedomthatwehaveneverexperiencedbeforeandareoftentimes
unconfidentwithhandlingthisindependence.Weareplacedinanenvironmentthatis
newtousandmaycomeacrossindividualsoreventsofwhichwearenotaccustomed.I
believethatPennStatemakesastrongattemptintryingtopreparefirstyearstudentsfor
thenewlifetheyareabouttoembrace,butIoftenfeelasiftheuniversityfallsshort.I,
alongwithmyfellowstudents,believethatitistimetotakeanewapproach.

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Onbehalfofthestudentbody,IproposethatThePennsylvaniaStateUniversity
FacultySenatereplacethecurrentfirstyearseminarcoursewithamandatoryonecredit
courseforallfirstyearsstudents,focusingonthefourmajorissuesof(1)alcoholand
drugsafety,(2)sexualassaultandviolence,(3)diversityandinclusion,and(4)mental
healthandawareness.Thiscoursewouldenlist20studentspersection,meetingoncea
weekfor50minuteswithoneinstructor/facilitator.Thecoursewouldhaveoneclasson
alcoholanddrugsafety,fourclassesonsexualassaultandviolence,fourclasseson
diversityandinclusion,andfourclassesonmentalhealthandawareness.Atthe
beginningofthesemester,thestudentswoulddecidethetopicortopicstobediscussed
forthetworemainingclasses(atthediscretionoftheinstructor).Theclasseswouldbe
discussionbasedandrequireoneblogentryeachweekonthetopicconsideredinclass.
Atthefirstclassofthesemester,studentswouldbegivenapersonalevaluationformto
completeathome.Thiswouldbecompletedhonestlyandwouldnotbeseenbythe
professororotherstudents.Attheendofthesemester,studentswouldcompletethesame
evaluationforminordertoprovidetheopportunitytoseehowtheyhavedevelopedin
knowledge,acceptance,andawareness.
Thesefouroverarchingtopicsareallobstaclesastudentmusttackleduringtheir
collegecareer,specificallyalcoholanddrugs.ItisnosecretthatthemajorityofPenn
Statestudentsparticipateintheconsumptionofalcoholand/ordrugs.Withthis,Ibelieve
itisnotinthepurposeoftheuniversitytoattempttoconvincestudentstonotparticipate
intheseactivities,butratheritisourdutytoinformthemoftheimplicationsandrisks
associatedwithengaginginit.Inthisoneclassperiod,studentswouldlearngeneral

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informationandstatisticsoftherelationshipbetweenalcoholandcollegestudents,such
astheoneslistedontheposterbelow.Theinstructorwouldalsoprovideinformationon
theUniversityspoliciesaswellasStateCollegespoliciesconcerningtheseactivities.
StudentswouldbetaughthowtocalculatetheirBloodAlcohol
Content(BAC)andtheeffectalcohol/drugshaveontheirbody
inthelongtermandshortterm.Ultimately,thisclasswould
eliminatetheneedforstudentstocompletePSUSAFE,an
onlinemodulethatinformsstudentsontheuseofalcoholand
thedangersassociatedwithit.PSUSAFEiscompletely
ineffectivebecausestudentsloseinterestandcaneasilyturnthe
programonmuteasitcontinuestoplayastheysurftheweb.
Withaclassroomenvironment,however,studentswouldhave
theopportunitytoengageintheconversationdirectlywith
peers.
Followingthealcoholanddrugawarenessclass,the
segmentofclassesonsexualassaultandviolencewouldbegin.
SexualassaultandviolenceisnotanuncommonissueacrossAmericancollegeand
universitycampuses.Individualsarebecomingincreasinglylikelytospeakoutonthe
incidencesandtheuniversityneedstonotonlysupportthis,butalsoencourageit.Recall
thenumerousalertsthestaffandstudentsreceivethroughTimelyWarning,the
notificationsystemhereoncampus.Justthispastweekend,asexualassaultwasreported,
occurringonApril8thinadormitoryhallinthePollockResidenceComplex(Timely

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Warnings).Onecanoftenoverhearstudentsconverseabouttheirdisgustandfearof
sexualassaultsafterreceivingTimelyWarnings.Sadly,oneinfivewomenaresexually
assaultedoncollegecampuses(Kessler,One)andinordertopreventandreducethe
numberofassaultsthatoccur,thismandatoryclasswouldcovermattersthatwouldbetter
informandpreparetheundergraduates.
Thefirstclassonthetopicwouldcoverwhatactionsconstitutesexualassaultand
violence,howtoidentifyit,andthefactualdefinitionofconsent.Toeffectivelyeducate
thestudents,theinstructorcouldplayvideosofvariousscenarioswhereavictimmaybe
sexuallyassaultedandtheclasswoulddiscusshowtoidentify/understandwhyitisan
assault.Thenextclasswouldfocusonbystanderinterventionandhowanindividualthat
maynotbedirectlyinvolvedintheconflictcanbeamajorassetinendingit.Teaching
studentsthenecessaryskillsandstepstobesuccessfulatthiswouldbebeneficialoverall
inreducingthenumberofassaults.Thethirdclasswouldbedesignatedtoproviding
studentswiththeresourcestheyhaveavailableoncampus.TheCenterforWomen
Studentsisanexcellentfacilitythatisopentoallstudents(notjustfemales)andassists
individualsfacedwithsexualviolence.Theinstructorwouldofferinformationonhowto
reportacaseandthestepsinvolved,emphasizingthatthevictimcanremainanonymous
throughouttheprocess.Thelastclasswouldbecenteredonsexualviolenceand
awarenessincorrelationtoalcoholanddrugsafety,relayinghowthoughtsandjudgment
areimpairedandspecifyingthatconsentcannotbefullygivenwhenundertheinfluence.
Withthefourclassesinthecourse,theprogramPSUAWAREcouldalsobeeliminated.

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Thisprogramfocusesonsexualassault,butisineffectivebecauseitdoesnotcaptivate
theaudienceandhasnoanopportunityforengagementordevelopment.
Withtheconclusionofthesexualassaultandviolenceclasses,the
instructor/facilitatorwouldbeginwiththesectionondiversityandinclusion.Inmy
personalopinion,thisisthebiggestissuePennStateiscurrentlyfacing.Ouruniversityis
adiversecommunitycomprisedofindividualswithdifferingbackgrounds.Accordingto
themostrecentstatisticsfoundbyPennStateforthe201415academicschoolyear,the
studentbodyis69.9%white,6%AfricanAmerican,5.9%AsianAmerican,5.9%
Hispanic/Latino,7.6%International,and4.7%otherraces(Admission).Withsucha
diversepopulation,onewouldthinkthatacceptanceandinclusionwouldnotbea
problemoncampus,butthisisnotthecase.Lookingattherecenteventssurrounding
Ferguson,numerousAfricanAmericanstudentsgatheredintheHUBonDecember2,
2014toconductadieinprotest.Thesestudentshadfreedomofspeechandfeltasiftheir
voice(orlackofvoiceinthismatter)shouldbeheard.Laterthatday,variousstudents
acrosscampusrespondedwithcruelandintolerablepostingsonthepopularsocialmedia
applicationYikYak.Below,Iprovidedfourscreenshotsofstatementsthatwereposted
inreferencetothedieinprotest.

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Itisunderstoodthatthesepostingsarealsoafreedomofspeech,butthe
differencebetweenthetwoliesinwhatPennStatedesirestorepresentandencompassin
thestudentpopulation.DoestheUniversitywanttorepresentstudentsthatprotestina
civilandrespectfulmannerorratherstudentswhorespondwithbacklashandracial
slurs?Thereisanobviousneedfordiversitylessonsandthisneedhasneverbeengreater.
Throughthesefourclasses,studentswouldhaveanopportunitytoexplorehowitfeelsto
bediscriminatedagainst.Therewouldbediscussiononthebackgroundsofdifferent
individualsintheclass,learningthateventhoughtheyallhavedifferentbeliefsand
ideologies,theycanstilltreatoneanotherwithrespectonacollegecampus.Lastly,the
instructorwouldinformthestudentsofwheretheWeArePennStatecheeroriginated,
explainingthatitwasfoundedontheacceptanceandinclusionofAfricanAmerican
studentsincollegiatefootball.Theseclasseswouldbeengagingandeyeopening;it
wouldbeanopportunityforstudentstounderstandwhyweshouldacceptallindividuals
forwhotheyareandthathereatPennState,weareinnoplacetovictimize.

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Thefinaltopicdiscussedinthiscoursewouldbementalhealthandawareness,an
increasingconcernacrosshighereducationinstitutionsacrossthecountry.Stress,
depression,andanxietyarebecomingmoreprevalenteachyear,especiallyamongst
collegestudents.Thefourclassescenteredonthiswouldbeginwithanopendiscussion
forstudentstoexplainwhentheyfeelthemoststressed,depressed,oranxiousandwhy
theybelievethesefeelingsarise.Anotherclasswouldbecompletelydedicatedto
teachingcopingstrategiessuchasdeepbreathing,organization,andrelaxation
techniques.Thethirdclasswouldbeanexcellentchancefortheinstructortoadvocatefor
CAPS,theCounselingandPsychologicalServicesCenterthatisopenforallstudents.
StudentsdonotrealizethatCAPShasvariousservicesforstudentsthatarenotonlyfree,
butalsoextremelybeneficialfortheindividualswellbeing.Thefinalclasswouldbe
pairedwithalcoholanddrugsafety,examininghowalcoholismandothervarious
diseasesarenotahealthyoreffectivewaytocopewithonesfeelings.Theseproblems
areimportanttodiscusswithcollegestudentsbecausethenotionofbeingsubjecttosuch
diseasesisnotacommonthought.
Theideaofrequiringallfirstyearstudentstoenrollinamandatorycourse
focusedonthesefouraspects(alcoholanddrugsafety,sexualassaultandviolence,
diversityandinclusion,andmentalhealthandawareness)mayseemdifficulttoenactand
conduct,butthereisnobettertimetosolvethesecriticalmattersthanthepresentday.
Lookingatothermajoruniversitiesacrossthecountry,schoolssuchasUniversityof
CaliforniaLosAngeles(UCLA)andUniversityofWashingtonhavealreadytakenthe
leadwithsimilarideas.TheUCLAfacultyhasapprovedadiversityclassrequirementfor

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allstudentssothattheymayexposestudentstobeliefsandbackgroundsotherthantheir
own.Differentclasseswouldbeofferedinvariousdepartmentssotheadditionalcredit
wouldnotbeaburdenforstudents(Gordon,UCLA).AttheUniversityofWashington,
thefacultysaysthattheyhaveanobligationtopreparestudentsforamoreglobal
society.SimilarlytoPennState,theUniversityofWashingtonalsostates,Students
comefromdifferentplaceswithdifferentbackgroundsand...arriveattheuniversity
wherewe'dbecomepartofthishugemeltingpot.Becauseofthis,theybelievethatitis
necessarytorequirestudentstotakeacourseondiversity(Turnbull,University).If
PennStatedidrequirethiscourse,wewouldsimplybetakingpartofanational
movementthatisontheuprising.
Iamawarethatrequiringacourseonmajorissuessuchasdiversityandsexual
assaultisnoforeignconcepttothePennStateFacultySenate,soIurgeyoutostrongly
considermyproposaltoimplementthiscourse.IamwritingtoyoutodaybecauseIhave
heardtheworriesandconcernsofmyfellowstudentsanditistimetoaddressthese
issues.Iunderstandthatitisalargesteptotake,butthelongerwedowait,themore
studentsaresubjecttoalcoholpoisoning,sexualassault,discrimination,and
anxiety/stress.ThetimehascomeforPennStatetobeginaddressingthesemattersandI
nowleaveitinthehandsoftheFacultySenate.
Thankyousomuchforyourconsiderationandyourtime.Pleasefeelfreeto
contactmewithquestionsorconcernsviaemailataes5772@psu.edu.

Respectfullysubmitted,

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AlexanderShockley

WorksCited
"AdmissionandUniversityStatistics."PennStateUndergraduateAdmissions.The
PennsylvaniaStateUniversity,2013.Web.13Apr.2015.
Gordon,Larry."UCLAFacultyApprovesDiversityClassRequirement."LosAngeles
Times.LosAngelesTimes,31Oct.2014.Web.13Apr.2015.
Kessler,Glenn."OneinFiveWomeninCollegeSexuallyAssaulted:AnUpdateonThis
Statistic."WashingtonPost.TheWashingtonPost,17Dec.2014.Web.12Apr.
2015.

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"TimelyWarnings."PennStateTimelyWarnings.ThePennsylvaniaStateUniversity,11
Apr.2015.Web.12Apr.2015.
Turnbull,Lornet."UniversityOfWashingtonDiversityCourseNowRequiredFor
Graduation."TheHuffingtonPost.TheHuffingtonPost,10June2013.Web.13
Apr.2015.