Collegiality and the 2020–21 EPIC Fellows

On August 13 and 14, 2020, Stanford Global Studies (SGS) welcomed 12 new Education Partnership for Internationalizing Curriculum (EPIC) Fellowship Program community college instructors as members of its 2020–21 cohort. SPICE along with the Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis are SGS’s EPIC partners. Jonas Edman is working with six of the community college fellows during the current academic year as they seek to increase the international, intercultural, and global dimensions in their curriculum.

The six instructors and the working titles of their projects are:

• Sravani Banerjee, Evergreen Valley College; Incorporating Social Justice and Global Issues in Freshman Composition
• Julia diLiberti, College of DuPage; Rethinking and Diversifying Global Education: Perspectives, Policy, and Pedagogy
• Maiya Evans, Skyline College; Expanding the Borders of the Public Health Curriculum
• Melissa King, San Bernadino Valley College; Defining Moments in Global Studies Education
• Rebecca Nieman, San Diego Mesa College; Internationalizing Business Law Curriculum in Community Colleges Through Experiential Learning Activities
• Joanna Sobala, Mission College; Women and Feminism in the World
   

Since SPICE began working with the fellowship program about ten years ago, Edman has regularly commented not only on the insights that he has gained both in terms of the challenges that community college instructors face and the rewarding aspects of teaching that they experience, but also about the collegiality of the group of fellows with whom he works. Edman commented, “The two-day intensive workshop, though virtual, seemed to help cultivate a strong professional learning community amongst the fellows. In just our first two online discussions, I have already noticed strong collegiality among the fellows. In addition, given the political climate today, each of their project topics has taken on an added significance.” Banerjee’s project, for example, focuses on incorporating social justice and global issues in freshmen composition at Evergreen Valley College in San Jose. Her goal is to introduce perspectives on social justice and global issues, challenge stereotypes, and instill critical thinking skills as students discuss issues of identity.

The 2020–21 EPIC Fellowship Program will culminate in an EPIC Symposium in May 2021. The fellows will make presentations of their projects to representatives of community colleges and the Stanford community. Earlier this month, the 2018–19 EPIC Fellows (representing seven community colleges from California and Texas) had a virtual reunion, and it was gratifying for me to be reminded of the enduring connections and community built through the EPIC Fellowship and to learn that their EPIC projects continue to benefit their students. Edman and I hope that the conversations this year will continue to be robust and spontaneous and that the collegiality of the 2020–21 EPIC Fellows will extend far beyond the 2021 EPIC Symposium.

Read the recent full article from SGS.

To stay informed of SPICE-related news, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.