CIT Training – A police beating that didn’t happen.

There’s been a lot of focus lately on Crisis Intervention Training for police officers. It’s being billed as an antidote to the failures of police to handle situations involving mental illness. Maryland just became the first state to mandate it state-wide for all officers, thanks to the work of the #JusticeForEthan movement. I’ll be writing … Continue ReadingCIT Training – A police beating that didn’t happen.

“It’s so sad when people have special needs”: Thoughts on Inclusion from the Bus Stop

Not Nico’s Actual Bus “It’s so sad when people have special needs.” A caring, sweet, 4th-grader said this to me at the bus stop a few minutes ago. My son and I crossed the street, running and laughing, happy. Then he asked me to go see a dog that was being walked across the grass, … Continue Reading“It’s so sad when people have special needs”: Thoughts on Inclusion from the Bus Stop

Elliot Rodger and Intersectionality. Fighting “the shrug.”

A representation of possible intersections. Not representative of Rodger. The murders in California and the subsequent #YesAllWomen hashtag (an overview) have, appropriately, dominated my social media world since it happened. For some, the murder is a clear call to action – but to act where? How? For others, the response has been to shrug, to say, “it’s complicated,” or just … Continue ReadingElliot Rodger and Intersectionality. Fighting “the shrug.”

Sunday Roundup

It’s Sunday and it’s my birthday. Here’s my blog post. I wrote good stuff this week. Please go read it and share it. 🙂 I published three essays – Chronicle on being a working dad, CNN on trigger warnings, and Chronicle Vitae on labor identity for full-time faculty, which is a record for me. All of these are themes to … Continue ReadingSunday Roundup

Resources: Scorn

I’m working on a piece about the various ways that writers about higher education, especially those within the academy, write about students with absolute disdain. Here are some of the responses to the Trigger Warning and Commencement issue, both filled with scorn and not getting it. Here’s the worst, one so bad I am hesitant … Continue ReadingResources: Scorn

Work is Work!

On International May Day I wrote a little hymn. I wrote: Teaching is work. Programming is work. Scholarship is work. Science is work. Grading is work. Committee service is work. Today Chronicle Vitae published a column on academic work as labor, as work. It’s a linked column to this first piece on the language of adjunct … Continue ReadingWork is Work!