Dr. William Coleman Jr.
Department: Communications
What types of interesting features do you incorporate into your classes?
I am always looking for creative and unique approaches to my classes. For instance, my Intercultural Communication class (CM 384) is structured so that the class is half international students. American and international students are then placed into intercultural groups and work together throughout the semester learning about communication styles in other cultures. Students in this class also get the first chance at traveling with me to New Mexico to spend the week after graduation at the Pueblo of Tesuque. Here, the students work on the Pueblo interacting with the community and learning about the values and spirituality of American Indians. In my Media Criticism seminar we recently have focused on how the media portray “terrorism” and “war” by comparing mainstream U.S. media with middle eastern websites and blogs. Two of my favorite classes focus on the rhetoric of African Americans (CM 382) and the rhetoric of American Indians (CM 381). In these courses we read primary source materials such as the speeches of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King and documents authored by members of the American Indian Movement (AIM). When appropriate I utilize web sites, film and documentaries in my classes. Students can also expect to participate in group presentations and to engage in several writing assignments in my courses.
In your opinion, how is Mount Union College unique from other small liberal arts colleges?
The campus is quite friendly and there is positive student-professor interaction. There is opportunity here for students to really get to know their professors and to work with them. For instance, another professor and myself along with two students recently collaborated and presented together at an intercultural communication conference at the University of Miami (FL).
How do Mount Union students benefit from attending a small school as opposed to a larger school?
In the small school setting, it is virtually impossible for any student to get lost or unnoticed. Students at Mount are not numbers, but individuals who are actively involved in their education. The campus community is a welcoming community that is open and accepting of all.
Have you done any interesting research or developed any interesting courses at Mount Union? If so, explain.
I have developed the following courses: African American Rhetoric; American Indian Rhetoric; Intercultural Communication; Media Criticism; Race, Images and the Media. ? I have done research in Germany and published a book on the German Green Party. I have also studied at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change and the Jimmie Carter Presidential Library. I have spent sabbaticals in Germany studying the German Green political party and on the Tesuque Pueblo Reservation in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
In what activities do you participate in your spare time?
I like to spend time at our place on the shores of Lake Erie reading and writing. I also enjoy classical and jazz concerts and traveling throughout the Southwest.
Tell us about your work in diversity and your position as Assistant to the President for Diversity.
As the world moves into the 21st Century, converging social, political and economic forces are driving societies closer together and swiftly moving the world toward a state of interdependency. In such times, people are finding themselves increasingly interacting with individuals from varied and diverse backgrounds. As an educational institution, the College must address this trend. Helping students understand diversity in all its manifestations is crucial to preparing them for meaningful work, fulfilling lives, and responsible citizenship.
At the college, diversity is understood as having both global and national relevance. The global aspect of diversity is known as internationalization and the national expression of diversity is known as multiculturalism.
Preparing students for responsible national and international citizenship necessitates cultivating a mindset that understands and accepts the diversity found throughout the world. Students must come to value the connectedness of all people on this planet and appreciate the “inescapable network of mutuality” that binds us all. This is the college’s diversity mission.
To address diversity intentionally and comprehensively at the college, the Office of the Assistant to the President for Diversity was created in August of 2006 and its purpose is to advocate, coordinate, support, and encourage innovation in college programs and structures designed to enhance diversity.
As a longtime supporter of diversity on campus, I was named the first Assistant to the President for Diversity. As noted above, I have developed diversity related courses such as: African American Rhetoric, Intercultural Communication, the American Indian and Rhetoric of Liberation, and Race, Images & the Media. In addition, several years ago, I worked with members of the Black Student Union to create the African American Studies Minor. I was director of that program for years and negotiated a sister college relationship with the historically Black college, Bethune-Cookman, in Daytona Beach, FL. I have been active in the Baika University Summer Program with our sister college in Osaka, Japan and organizer of the MUC-Tesuque Pueblo cultural exchange (begun in 1999 MUC students are able to be involved in this American Indian community near Santa Fe, New Mexico). I have traveled to Germany, Great Britain, Austria, Mexico, China, and Japan. In October 2006, I traveled to the Peoples Republic of China to meet with officials at Northeast Normal University in Chanchung, and lecture at Beijing University and Hefei University, Anhui Province. In July of 2007, I traveled to Osaka, Hiroshima, and Tokyo to meet with alums and officials at Baika University and Hiroshima Jogakuin University. I am currently the co-faculty advisor to Mount Union’s Association of International Students.