TOWARD A PLURALISTIC COMUNITY FREE FROM PREJUDICE:

A SUGGESTED AGENDA TO IMPROVE HUMAN RELATIONS AT RUTGERS

There are numerous ways to change thinking and behavior on a topic as complex as how we are to
begin to appreciate one another and to accord each other the dignity and respect that we all merit. Each
dimension of our University's vast enterprise offers opportunities to promote improved human relations, to
reduce prejudice and to increase understanding. Several proposals for activities in several areas of the
University's work are listed below. They are subject to revisions and/or withdrawal in the light of the
responses we receive to them. We intend to budget a significant sum for these purposes and, therefore, we
would be well served by your thoughtful response.

COURSEWORK

Virtually all courses and programs of study in the humanities and social sciences and in the
professions offer ideal opportunities for including content and discussion of the issues of prejudice, bigotry
and the promotion of understanding and respect for difference and similarity.
As we are seeing in the gender project being undertaken by Professor Carol Smith and her
colleagues, there are innumerable ways that the dimension of gender can be addressed within the
"traditions" of disciplines and coursework. Dimensions of race and ethnicity can be addressed similarly.
It has been suggested that, to encourage this pluralistic and collegiate approach, proposals to
increase these activities in existing and new courses be requested and evaluated; that that information about
what is "working" be disseminated; and/that funds be allocated to encourage and support these efforts.

HONORS PROGRAMS

Honors programs offer uniquely rich opportunities for structuring programs around large themes—
and how much larger a theme can there be in American culture than the questions of human relations and
racial and gender equality?
Each college honors program should encourage the development of honors sections on these
themes; deans and college officials should actively participate in teaching these sections, as well; and funds
be allocated to this effort.

STAFF DEVELOPMENT

Treating each other with respect and dignity is a necessary condition to achieve a pluralistic
community free of prejudice. Behavior which is intended to harm should not and will not be tolerated.
Oftentimes behavior which is not intended to be offensive is offensive and hinders our ability to deal with
one another effectively. We can learn how to influence this behavior with staff development.
Extensive staff development programs should be designed, developed and implemented;
administration, unions and the Administrative Assembly work jointly in the program development; staff
development activities that have already been planned should be supported; and, funds should be made
available to support these efforts.

STUDENT TO STUDENT RELATIONS

Students are the real community in residence at our University. They spend the most time together.
Their efforts at self-governance, their membership in special interest groups and their day-to-day
recreational and residential lives are the crucibles of the development of their skills and capacities for
citizenship. We must do what we can to support their activities to achieve friendships, a sense of the
inclusive community, and an appreciation for the larger world- and its problems.
Programs to encourage student to student efforts to eliminate bigotry and achieve community
should be encouraged. Two specific programs have been recommended and merit sympathetic
consideration.
The first is a grant program to fund demonstration projects in student life designed to improve our
understanding of one another. Requests for proposals should be announced and/a competitive program of
grants to fund student life projects be created. Preference should be given to projects which represent joint
applications from student life and/or student service staff and organized student groups (examples might
include a project of a "special interest dormitory group" and the residence life staff aimed at enlarging the
appreciation of the general residents for a particular culture or ethnic group, or a program of consciousness
raising sponsored by a women’s group and members of a particular service function, such as health service
staff.)
The second is a grant to students designed to achieve the announced goals. In this program,
students who wish to make joint application would be eligible for funds to be used to improve human
relations, increase respect and understanding, and promote community values. It is suggested that initially
awards be made following a competitive process with recommendations on awards to be made by student
panels.

RESEARCH

Of the topics deserving of study by our faculty what could be more important and pressing than the
issues of race and gender relations, the promotion of human understanding and the reduction of bigotry?
What causes bigotry and what can be done about it? What conditions underlie prejudice and discrimination?
How and why are our attitudes about one another formed? What accounts for our apparent
insularity, our lack of appreciation for the rest of the world?
Numerous members of our faculty and students are engaged with these questions right now. To
support and encourage this research, it has been suggested that we solicit interest in the development of a
special research institute — to have affiliations with all existing programs designed to encourage this study
— to provide a focus and a special home for inquiries of this nature. Further, it has been suggested that
funds be allocated to the Rutgers Research Council for the express purpose of aiding in the sponsorship of
individual research projects in the areas mentioned.
 COMMUNITY RELATIONS

The University is based in three cities in New Jersey, each one offering special opportunities to
practice what we preach, to benefit from the rich cultural diversity each city offers, and to make our own
contribution to the welfare of these cities.
It has been suggested that: each of the provosts meet with appropriate city leadership and to join in
the human relations efforts underway in those cities; the University encourage active participation — to the
extent that it is desired by the community — in community boards, citizens' and church groups and other
groups concerned with promoting human relations and understanding; and that matching funds be made
available to support joint community-university projects to achieve these goals.

COMMUNICATIONS

Rutgers has made great strides in developing written and other communications which are
sensitive to a variety of intended readers, and which use language and imagery designed to effectively
achieve the intended communication. But we should never cease being concerned about whether what we
are saying makes sense to our intended reader or listener, or whether what seems abundantly clear to us —
sharing as much time and experience with one another as we do — makes any sense to anyone else. One
way to find out is to ask the intended recipients of the message to react. This we should seek to do.
It has been suggested that; consultation be made available to look at the overall imagery and
content of our publication with specific reference to racial and ethnic groups and women.

NEEDS ASSESSMENT

There are a variety of unobtrusive ways to determine how our students feel about the issues of
human relations. We use survey efforts to assess satisfaction with a variety of our programs and services.
We have used the focus group interview technique to get a better feel for the texture of our students'
thoughts and feelings. This technique should be expanded so that we can refine our efforts to improve
human relations and, by focusing better, we can also conserve resources.
It has been suggested that our School of Communication, Information and Library Studies join
with the Interfunctional Management Program staff of the Graduate School of Management to design and
implement a student-operated, professionally supervised project to assess the state of student feelings about
human relations and to do so by conducting, analyzing and reporting on focus group interviews of
undergraduate and graduate students; and that sufficient funds to accomplish the task be allocated.

HONORING EXCELLENCE

One way to encourage great effort is to acknowledge to ourselves and proclaim to the community
at large the importance we attach to sustained and successful efforts. Thus, we have a series of awards for
teaching, research and public service and a number of awards to recognize extraordinary efforts by alumni,
staff and others.
 It has been suggested that the Governors and Trustees create a series of awards which will honor
excellences as it emerges from individual and collective efforts to promote understanding and improvement
in human relations.
The first category of award would be given to members of the University community who have by
their activities, be they in the field of teaching, research , public service, here or in the larger community,
worked with distinction to achieve racial/gender understanding, the elimination of prejudice and the
improvement of human relations.
A second category of awards to be created to honor student achievements:
—in the field of research (an award to be given to the student or students who produced
the most distinguished piece of research, writing or performance on the subject of human
relations),

—in the field of student to student relations (an award, or trophy, to be given to the
student or student group who achieved the greatest success at promoting human
relations and mutual respect), and,

—in the field of community service (an award, or trophy, to be given to the student or
student group that performed the most distinguished service to the community outside the
University).
Lastly, awards will be created to honor alumni achievements in the field of human relations.
These are some of the many possibilities that I would like for you to consider and discuss. I look
forward to hearing your comments on these proposals and any other ideas you might have.

Edward J. Bloustein President

September 28, 1987