Ethics @ the Diversity Conference! Day 1

I like how the diversity conference is two days long that overlap with this blog weekly blog assignment! I can blog today for this previous week and tomorrow for the next week. Nice!

Today there was a spoken word poet social activist who ended the conference day with a few poems, questions, and thoughts. I had a chance to talk with him afterwards and one piece of the conversation revolved around the role and responsibility that arises when a high school or middle school student performs spoken word about their lived experience and serious issues arise. Grad student Blanca was there as well and she said she has been working to start a spoken word community in the Reno K-12 schools. She gets push back from teachers who are afraid of what issues may arise and what new information they will know about their students. Teachers are concerned about how to deal with it.  The example of a young girl speaking about her rape was used.

So, what is the ethical decision in this situation?

The three of us agreed that not talking about it and perpetuating a culture of silence does not erase what happened. Bad things happen. Our students deal with heavy sh*t daily. Not talking about doesn't make it go away. Using spoken word as a way to communicate and process those experiences can be cathartic for the student and a creative and safe outlet. K-12 teachers are mandate reporters to begin with, so if a student came to them and shared a horrible trauma with them, they would have to act.

Plus, there is something to be said for being proactive. If we know that in general, spoken word can lead to the sharing of traumatic and abusive experiences, we can prepare for a response that is healing and appropriate.

What do y'all think?

Ethics in Policy Creation

"Kids' Solo Free Time Unleashes "Free-Range" Parenting Debate"

I grew up in Denver and Las Vegas and because my parents worked I was often home by myself. When I was younger, around 3 or 4 years old, my parents would leave me food and strict instructions to not answer the door or phone or touch the stove. By kindergarten I would walk home, retrieve the key from under the mat, and let myself in. As I got older, towards 9a nd 10 years old, I would take the bus by myself places. I would walk to our public library by myself. I don’t believe my parents were willfully neglectful. Rather, someone had to work! And daycare was expensive and they couldn’t see any other options.

As a grown up, and as a parent, would I make those same decisions now with my kids? Heck no! But I also live a very different life than the one my parents did. My struggles are not their struggles. I have a large community of support through friends. We take care of each other and often watch each other’s kids. And we can afford daycare, thought it hurts! I think we make the best decisions we can with what we know and what we have.

The part in the article that really got me was:

"A 10-year-old may be perfectly fine walking alone in one neighborhood, he says, but might not be safe in another with drug dealers on the corner. We hate to say that the people that live in those two communities ought to be treated differently because we would probably get into uncomfortable issues of socioeconomic status and ethnicity," he says. "But that's the reality in our country."

Is it ethical to tell one group of people they are allowed to let their kids play outside without adult supervision while telling a different group they would be penalized and prosecuted for the same actions?  Where our ethics and morals start cross, policies are at conflict and I am not so sure it would be ok to have different rules for different neighborhoods. In particular when due to life circumstances and poverty, the group that would be punished most is the very group that needs the flexibility the most.  

Ethics in Hiring...

The more I learn about the world of collegiate sports, the more I am confused and amazed by how intricate and nuanced it is.  It becomes difficult to not be cynical towards athletics when the news stories most produced center around scandals and student abuse or misconduct. I think it was highly unethical of this *coach to lead the student on, and then have a subordinate rescind his offer. However, I think it is even more unethical that the coach continues to be hired despite his notoriety.

"He left the Atlanta Falcons midseason with only a note. He pushed Auburn to fire his former boss, Tommy Tuberville, so he could have the job. He left Louisville the first time he was there shortly after making a long-term commitment with a new contract. And, of course, most infamously was Arkansas, where he got into a motorcycle crash with a girlfriend—he is married—who worked in the athletic department. Then he lied about it."

 
Clearly this man is unethical!

And his continued employment only affirms his ability to continue acting this way. He has no incentive to change his behavior. This hiring practice is not limited to athletics. We see it everywhere in education. Bad teachers get moved around. Incompetent staff are promoted or transferred. We shuffle "problem personnel" and lie during reference checks in hopes someone else will pick up our castaways and remove them from our list of problems.  Our continued hiring of people known to be unethical is an unethical process in and of itself.  In hiring this coach, the college knowingly put their students and staff (and future students) at risk of falling prey to unethical behaviors and made everyone an accomplice to this man's misbehavior.

*Did the link above not work? Try:  http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2358892-what-its-like-to-have-bobby-petrino-pull-your-offer-48-hours-before-signing-day?utm_source=cnn.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial