For more information, contact Sarah Hentges at sarah.hentges@maine.edu and/or talk to your advisor to see how these classes fit into your overall major program.

JUS 315: Tribal Law

The instructor for this course is Judge Eric Mehnert of the Penobscot Nation Trial Court, who developed a unique Wellness Court model, based on restorative justice principles and native healing practices. The Wellness Court deals with the aftermath of generations of systemic trauma and does an excellent job at restoring people to full participation in their community.
This is a completely different model from our usual court system. If you have an interest in social justice, substance abuse rehabilitation, child and family welfare, Native American culture, or cultural awareness, this course is for you!

HTY 321: US Immigration History

The history of immigration is central to both American history and evolving ideas of what it means to be an American. In this class, we will examine immigration history through several lenses, including social histories of diverse ethnic groups, evolving legal policies, waves of refugee and asylum seekers, and the shifting place of the “immigrant” in the American national imagination.

INT/HON 188: The Interdisciplinary Colloquium: Race and Social Justice

Spring 2022: Offered Thursdays from 4 to 5 pm (and online asynch “delayed viewing” section)
This year’s academic theme is Race & Social Justice. In this 1-credit spring course, students will learn about race and social justice from a variety of disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives. Each week a different faculty member will present/lead discussion based upon an assigned reading, film, or other text. We will consider, for instance: literature/art/poetry, science, and social science approaches as well as health inequities, state violence, the prison industrial complex, identity and representation, embodiment, power and empowerment, and proactive and productive ways to work toward social justice. Students who are interested in earning 3 credits on the theme of race and social justice may choose to enroll in INT 389 in addition to INT/HON 188.
In short: each week for this class students will have a short reading or video to watch each week, a class meeting to attend (or recording to watch), and a post/reply or journal option or one-hour conversation group. A short final reflection will conclude the work for this course.

INT 389 (2 credits)

Topics in Interdisciplinary Studies: Race & Social Justice
Students who enroll in INT/HON 188 may opt to enroll in this 2-credit course, giving them 3 credits total. Students in this 2-credit course will be asked to engage in online discussion and to complete a paper/project on the theme of race and social justice to be presented at the UMA Student Research Conference on April 22, 2022. Offered asynchronous online.

AME/INT/WGS 430E: Embodied Social Justice: Racialized Trauma and Cultural Transformation

What does it feel like to be centered, grounded, and in your body? How does this state allow us to heal and hold space for others to heal? Embodied Social Justice is an interdisciplinary field/focus of study that combines and expands critical educational theories, critical race theories, and intersectional feminist theory along with trauma studies, transformative justice, Somatics, neuroscience, and so much more. In this course, we will explore theoretical foundations as well as embodied practices as we develop a deeper understanding of individual and structural transformation and empowerment. We will consider the role of the body in social and cultural movements, intergenerational and racialized trauma, compound and collective trauma, cultural appropriation, critical consciousness, and mind/body healing practices like yoga and meditation. 3 CR. Prereqs: any AME, INT, or WGS course OR permission of instructor.

]]> /news/a-message-from-uma-president-rebecca-wyke/ Wed, 03 Jun 2020 15:44:10 +0000 /?p=7485 … Read More]]> To the UMA Community:

During these troubling times for our state and nation, it is important to remind everyone that UMA is committed to ensuring an inclusive environment for all members of our community. This includes people of all abilities, races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, nationalities, religious traditions, socioeconomic classes, and ages.

At the beginning of this year, a UMA team of faculty began developing a charge for a new Council on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion that would help guide the UMA community to understand, address, and meet this commitment. This fall we will share this team’s work and establish the Council on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and will seek the participation of our faculty, staff, and students.

We are grateful to have the Holocaust and Human Rights Center as a member of our Augusta campus community and support its efforts to provide programming on the topics of diversity, equity, and inclusion. This week the HHRC will hold a panel discussion on how racism is shaping the pandemic response, structural inequality, and implicit and explicit bias on June 7 in a program titled, .

Our hearts go out to the family of George Floyd and the many other individuals who have lost family, friends, and loved ones simply because of the color of their skin. Much work remains to be done to address the systemic, disparate treatment and economic inequalities faced for generations by many in this country. Each of us must also continue our own journey of awareness on the issues of racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Sincerely,

Rebecca M. Wyke, Ed.D.
President