Special Session 3
Special Session | Creating Inclusive Classrooms During a Time of EDI Backlash
Session Details
Time: 2:35 - 3:35 p.m.
Location: DCC 208
In a time of culture wars and ‘anti-woke’ backlash, it is all the more important to maintain a commitment to EDI and human rights in the classroom. How can one teach from a trauma-informed lens and encourage students to listen with compassion and empathy?
How do you balance freedom of expression and the need to cultivate a culture of mutual respect for diverse perspectives in the classroom? How can one talk about EDI and human rights in an accessible and respectful way?
Facilitators will lead the group to explore the challenges of creating an inclusive classroom based on EDI and human rights principles. We will also provide key information about human rights frameworks and tools to apply in navigating classroom discussions.
Presenters
Michelle Cho, Policy Review Facilitator, Human Rights Services joined TMU in 2019. Her role includes supporting the review of the university’s Discrimination and Harassment Prevention Policy and Sexual Violence Policy. Michelle also provides human rights training for staff, students and faculty on a wide range of topics, including educational sessions for people who have caused harm in the university community as an accountability measure. Her past work experience has largely focused on human rights and equity-based institutional change, education and community development. Past work experiences include roles in other parts of the public sector including the Anti-Racism Directorate (Cabinet Office) in the Ontario Public Service and in the Gender-Based Violence Prevention Office at the Toronto District School Board. She has a Masters in Social Work.
Erin Hallock, Director, Human Rights Services joined TMU in June 2020 and has been leading the Human Rights Services team since April 2023. Her role includes providing strategic advice and consultations, delivering education and training on human rights, and managing the university's confidential complaint resolution process for students, faculty and staff under the Discrimination and Harassment Prevention Policy (DHPP) and Sexual Violence Policy (SVP). Prior to joining TMU, Erin graduated with a Bachelor of Arts & Science degree from McMaster University, followed by a Law Degree from the University of Toronto. She practiced as a labour, employment and human rights lawyer for 10 years and regularly represented clients before courts and tribunals, including the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. Erin brings to Human Rights Services her expert knowledge of and commitment to human rights. She has worked with her team to improve the university's complaint resolution processes under the DHPP and SVP, including procedural enhancements that emphasize the importance of trauma-informed approaches, procedural fairness, and the exploration of alternative resolution and restorative justice responses to complaints of discrimination, harassment and sexual violence within the TMU community. Erin also brings her skills in leadership, relationship-building and collaboration to her work with partner offices across the university, and is committed to working together to create a human rights-centered campus at TMU.
