The English department will soon begin a search for a professor of Asian American studies, after the administration last week approved its request under the Faculty Diversity Initiative. The decision was announced at a speech given by UC Berkeley Professor Ronald Takaki, a pioneer in the field of ethnic and Asian American studies.
The Faculty Diversity Initiative was instituted several years ago, and allows for the hiring of two professors - typically minorities - in underrepresented areas of the curriculum each year.
This year's decision was precipitated by months of lobbying by the Asian American Curricular Transformation (AACT) Project, composed of students and professors looking to further Asian American studies options at Tufts. Both faculty and curricular diversity have been debated since the 1997 Task Force on Race found that Tufts is lacking in Asian American, Latin American and Native American studies.
Dean of the Colleges Charles Inouye called the decision "fantastic," saying it will broaden Tufts' curricular diversity. "It's not a professor for Asian Americans, it's a professor for Tufts," he said. "It's realizing that diversity is actually a central organizing concept of intellectual life."
Takaki's presentation was an appropriate setting for the announcement, as the speaker was largely responsible for the addition of an American Cultures requirement at Berkeley. Takaki's lecture - "Bursting to be told: Why Asian American Studies at Tufts?" - was planned well before the decision to hire an Asian American studies professor through the English department. Nonetheless, he congratulated the University on creating the faculty line and advised students on setting a vision for a comprehensive American Cultures program.
Takaki met with students both at his lecture, which boasted an attendance of over 300, and at a luncheon with a multi-racial coalition of students to discuss curricular needs. At the luncheon, Takaki discussed ways for students to come up with a concrete plan and create coalitions to increase the study of American cultures at Tufts.
The program's success at Berkeley, Takaki said, would not have happened without a strong vision. "I have found it's very important - the struggle for concrete goals," Takaki said. "I want us to see how this piece fits into a larger puzzle."
Commenting on Tufts' strength in international relations, Takaki encouraged students to "link the study of diversity in the United States to diversity in the rest of the world."
Inouye agreed, saying this lens would capitalize on Tufts' strengths. "There is a natural connection between international diversity and domestic diversity," he said.
Many professors required their students to attend the lecture or opted to go to the lecture instead of teaching class for the evening.
Speaking from personal experience, and writing notes on the blackboard, Takaki turned the lecture into a virtual workshop for students on how to achieve curricular diversity at Tufts.
Takaki said the next step for Tufts students is insuring that all interests are represented on the search committee for the new professor. "We want to make sure those on the search committee are qualified to make this connection [about a broader goal], and are knowledgeable about Asian American studies."
Encouraging students to work for long-term solutions and garner support from faculty members, Takaki said that studying diversity in America could leave a lasting impact on the University.
"This could be your legacy," he said. "Just imagine if you did establish a requirement here that would be part of humanities and social sciences; if you put that into place."
Students felt both the luncheon, which allowed for intimate discussion, and the lecture, which brought public attention to the issue, were beneficial. "It was amazing to see the Tufts student body coming to a lecture that finally deals with the experiences of Asian Americans and their history in the US," sophomore and AACT member David Wu said.
Mary Anne Anderson contributed to this article
