The following post was written by Will Brummett, Program Manager of Co-Curricular Service in the Honey W. Nashman Center for Civic Engagement and Public Service.
Over the last few weeks, the community engagement networks have been discussing how to be prepared to support students and communities in the period following election day on November 3rd. We should be prepared for a few days (at least) of ballot counting, recounting, possible controversy, ambiguity, and potential unrest. Much of this conversation was sparked by this New York Times article.
Campuses are making their own plans to attend to the safety and mental health of students, and we will keep you apprised of GW’s evolving plans, including opportunities for students to dialogue with each other or reach out for counseling to address the added anxiety of a state of limbo for the country.
Additionally, I believe we as faculty would benefit from making our own preparations. There are no “right” answers or responses but it would be a mistake to not engage in some personal reflection time, to know our own hearts and capacities and have a plan for our own response.
- If you have synchronous classes scheduled for November 4 or 5, how will you navigate students’ need to process the election results (or lack of results)? What content do you have planned to cover that day? Do you think you will really be able to focus on all of it?
- What is your comfort level with facilitating a nonpartisan dialogue during class on those days? How might you prepare to create a safe space for students to express their concern, outright anger, or anxiety?
- Is an asynchronous conversation or outlet for sharing feelings and perspectives the better fit for your students?
- Students know Nashman faculty for being particularly in tune with issues of community wellbeing and civic engagement. To what extent do you anticipate being a person that students turn to for advice on civic action? If there are virtual protest movements, do you feel it is appropriate to share the information with students?
- To what extent do you feel you should discuss advanced safety preparedness with students? Students living in DC and other areas where unrest might result could benefit from a reminder to have enough supplies at home to avoid going out for a few days. Do you have that kind of relationship with your students?
- What resources can we share with each other, including those that can be forwarded to students? Many of our professional associations will be sharing advice in the coming weeks – please forward it to me to post for others to benefit from.
Resources:
- The 6th Annual GW Diversity Summit, "Past. Present. Future. What will our legacy be?" is November 11th-13th and will be a great opportunity for students to further engage about political and social justice issues they care about, including the election results.
- If you are concerned about a particular student, you are asked to please submit a Care Team Referral and/or connect them with the GW Counseling and Psychological Services Center.
- Staff and faculty have access to the Well Being Hotline, GW's Employee Assistance Program (EAP), which offers resources to manage your daily life needs at no cost to you. The hotline provides around-the-clock, confidential counseling (up to assistance ranging from life event planning to personal counseling) from highly trained master's- and doctoral-level clinicians.
- I also encourage you to review a recent blog post from the Nashman Center’s Will Brummett, which includes an activity he has used to start facilitating these discussions with students.
