The committee formed in response to professor William Penn’s alleged anti-Republican rant is coming together and forming goals, with the members named at the monthly Steering Committee meeting Tuesday.
The Committee on Social Media, Pedagogy and Academic Rights and Responsibilities is chaired by communication professor William Donohue, who also is chair of the University Committee on Faculty Affairs. Other members are Penny Gardner, an assistant professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric and American Cultures; Ron Fisher, an economics professor; Liza Potts, an assistant professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric and American Culture; and Manuel Chavez, an associate professor of journalism.
The ad hoc committee will gather information, examine experiences at other universities and present the best practices as they relate to speech rights and responsibilities, social media and teaching in the classroom.
The new group will report to the Steering Committee early in the spring semester with recommendations on how MSU should use its findings, said Sue Carter, Steering Committee chair and journalism professor.
“The (committee will address) broad questions of social media in the classroom — how it affects the learning process, how it affects all of us, not just those of us who are teaching, but those of us who are students as well,” Carter said.
Council of Graduate Students President Stefan Fletcher said teaching assistants should be asked for input, since they might have unique perspectives.
Donohue said he doesn’t have a plan to do a survey of faculty and graduate students, but if the committee deems it necessary, it could happen through an ANGEL page or chat forum. He added that students could possibly be included in that kind of data gathering.
“I’d love to get input from teaching assistants and anyone through their respective departments and colleges,” he said. “I’d love to know what their experiences are working with students and how social media is used in teaching across the university.”
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