Ooley's Diversity Statement
Although I originally come from a farming and mining community in the Midwest that is predominately white and Protestant, I have had several experiences during my life that have greatly impacted my capacity to respect others. During my childhood, my father was a blue-collar welder, and my mother worked outside of the home part-time. It may have surprised many of our neighbors that my traditional parents struggled financially to send their teenager to Japan as an exchange student. This life-altering experience of living with a family from such a different background has continued to influence my personal work, my teaching, and my spiritual practice. Being the only Caucasian within an entire Asian town, was eye-opening. For the first time, I experienced being The Other and felt the weight of representing my whole country. The journey resulted in my passion for study abroad programs. In 2015, I constructed and led color theory and research classes abroad. Emphasis on good world citizenship, etiquette, and cultural sensitivity were integral parts of my curriculum.
My world expanded further when I moved to Dallas to attend college. During my undergrad years, I met and married a non-citizen and quickly became educated in the culture and politics of the immigrant community. The myth of the easily-obtained American Dream, the demand and expectations of the family “back home”, and the struggles of dealing with government bureaucracies were often topics of conversion. The community was very tightly-knit, and once again I experienced the feeling of Otherness; not only due to cultural differences concerning background, religion, and gender roles but also by my inability to speak the language fluently. This experience has fostered deep empathy within me for my ESL students and has shaped my teaching methods. When I have ESL students, I try to avoid slang and my Midwestern colloquialisms. To alleviate the potential hazards of my naturally fast speech patterns, I post instructions, presentations, and assignment sheets online. This is done not only for the sake of transparency but also with the knowledge that those who didn’t understand my spoken instructions can read them later at their own pace.
Being an instructor at both a large institution and a small urban community college has also greatly influenced my consideration for diverse populations. I am sensitive to the fact that some students do not wish to define themselves, or their art, by their race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation; therefore, I do not directly assign projects forcing the issue. However, should a student wish to explore the subject matter, I encourage thoughtful, thorough research and deep, personal investigation. For example, in the past, I have assigned traditional folk pattern color wheels in my foundation design courses. Many took the opportunity to explore their own heritage, although some students researched other cultures to include in their designs. Presentations of their work during critiques created dynamic discussions about culture and identity.
In the art appreciation course I teach at an urban community college, my students are required to complete two major assignments: to write an essay about an artwork from the Dallas Museum of Art and to give a presentation about a contemporary artist. The museum has an encyclopedic permanent collection that lends itself well to those who wish to research their own cultural heritage. Since the class is attended by mostly non-majors, I provide a wide list of possible contemporary artists for the presentation assignment. The list contains Europeans, Mexicans, African-Americans, Asians, Indians, people with disabilities, feminists, and artists with various sexual orientations. One semester, my student from the Navajo Nation requested information about contemporary Native American artists. I worked with her to locate resources that would help create an informative and successful presentation. This assignment is especially enriching because the students’ findings are shared with the entire class. I let the students choose the subjects and lead the discussions. In this aspect of their education, I see my roles as facilitator and as a fellow student learning about my class' experiences and connections.
I do not hold the opinion that in order to teach a population, one must be from that population. Instead, I feel having a good variety of instructors and teachers that are respectful of diversity is the optimal solution for any institution. My students are so diverse that a one-background/identity-fits-all instructor is simply unrealistic. I would never claim to possess a full understanding of another’s challenges or struggles to find identity and inclusion. However, my openness to others and ongoing learning about the vast array of human experiences are personal qualities I bring to my teaching. It is my hope that my outlook helps foster a sense of belonging in my students both in and outside the classroom.
