by the staff of Liberty Unyielding
It’s the “return of compulsory chapel: George Mason University, a Virginia public institution, will require students to take two social justice courses,” notes Walter Olson of the Cato Institute. A student taking such courses will have “to demonstrate” “competencies” in “diversity,” “equity.” and “inclusion.” George Mason University is Virginia’s largest university.
Last month, George Mason University announced:
Students entering Mason in Fall 2024 or later will be required to take two Mason Core courses that have the Just Societies flag….
Courses with a Just Societies flag must meet both of these outcomes, in addition to other required course outcomes related to the primary Mason Core Exploration category. Upon completing a Just Societies course, students will be able to demonstrate the following two competencies:
- a) Define key terms related to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion as related to this course’s field/discipline and
b) Use those terms to engage meaningfully with peers about course issues …
- Articulate obstacles to justice and equity, and strategies for addressing them, in response to local, national, and/or global issues in the field/discipline
The National Review says that “the classes no doubt will be grievance-dominated and utopian.”
There is a course approval process for faculty wishing to teach these required courses. But as a practical matter, only courses with a left-leaning ideological slant are likely to be approved. “What do you suppose would happen if a GMU professor proposed a course on the theme that the most just society would be one with a minimal government?,” asks George Leef of the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal. Continue reading