Strategic Positivity: Chalking to Start the Change

Strategic positivity is the phrase that came to the forefront of the campus community this past week following Frostburg State University’s plan to become more culturally competent.

On April 28, Frostburg State became aware of a term that is considered racist, which was a part of a message written by a Chartwells employee to indicate that the Relay for Life dinner would be a cookout in the Cordts PE Center.

Eleven student leaders representing the executive board Student Government Association (SGA), both new members and those whose term just recently ended, the Black Student Alliance (BSA), and the Frostburg chapter of the NAACP met with President Nowaczyk, Dr. Tom Bowling, the Vice President for Student Affairs, Bill Mandicott, the Assistant Vice President for Student and Community Involvement, David Glenn, the Director of Dining Services, and Michael Lannon, the Regional Director of Chartwells on Sunday, April 29.

According to an email sent by President Nowaczyk, the meeting initially addressed the racist term before moving to the impact that the offensive phrase had on students, particularly African Americans. Lannon communicated that an investigation is ongoing, and they are examining the employee’s intent in the message. The eleven student leaders voiced that the initial response to the incident did not effectively acknowledge the impact on students and left many feeling vulnerable and marginalized. The meeting’s primary goal was to produce a constructive response to the incident. Chartwells will now partner with the University to sponsor a “Train the Trainers” workshop as well as identifying a team of their employees to join the Frostburg State affiliate NCBI to train as facilitators. Chartwells also plans on working towards employing more underrepresented minority groups in the dining services.

Though considered a “move in the positive direction,” the incident opened dialogue of the issues that affect the ambience of the campus community’s diversity and inclusion.

Following the meeting Sunday night, a group of Frostburg students participated in a chalking to express their thoughts. They used chalk and wrote on the streets. One student credited the Frostburg police with blocking off the road to ensure their safety while exercising their right to free speech. However, when students came back to campus Monday morning for classes, the chalk had been power-washed away – even from the campus free-speech zones (the Clock Tower, the Echo Circle, and the traffic divider near Chesapeake Dining Hall), which senior Johana Gourdin considered “absolutely appalling” and another student termed censorship.

As a result of the power-washing along with a multitude of built-up emotions from past incidents, students from the student organization, Overcome, prompted a “Chalk Out: Students for Strategic Positivity” to take place on Monday afternoon around 4 p.m. Overcome is a student organization that is a taskforce of students, faculty, and staff that look critically at the University, more specifically, the experiences of marginalized and underrepresented groups. It provides a safe space for the expression of ideas. Participants were given a list of rules ranging from the surfaces they could chalk on, to complying with a potential police encounter and to take pictures of the chalking for evidence and social media. A list of sayings that could be modified with limitations was also provided. Students took to various areas around campus ranging from the Dining Hall, the Echo Circle, the stairs in front of Compton Science Center, the traffic divider by the Dining Hall and the Clock Tower. The second chalking and its limitations to what was acceptable was to give the University no reason to wash away what was written.

In front of the dining hall while chalking, “Hungry for Respect,” a student noted that “we all need to stop fighting with each other.”

A student who asked to go by Rae said she took part in the chalking because she wants change on the campus for the surrounding area, and this is an issue that has been discussed over and over. In her eyes, it is time to “set our eyes upon” a change.

Another student, Malasia, said she is looking for change both on and off campus, as some locals have the attitude that “black students ruin this town.” She said some people think certain things are okay while growing up, but we need to educate ourselves to what is okay in modern time.

Kawin Goodwin, the Vice President of BSA, a student organization whose purpose is to “preserve and advance the cultural identity of Black African descent in the USA,” said that the chalking was important to “inspire widespread change.” He hopes other students now see the problem and want the same change he wants.

The meeting that took place on Sunday and the chalking that followed opened dialogue on campus. The chalking had students of both the Black African race as well as Caucasian students who took part to use their voice in support of diversity and inclusion on campus. Chalking gives students a way to engage with administration and exercise their freedom of speech in a diplomatic manner. Currently, Frostburg State University has no chalking policy, despite attempts to start a formal conversation about adopting a policy. Gourdin said that it is important to keep timers on diversity initiatives to hold those in positions of authority accountable. Overcome adopted Towson University’s chalking policy because it coincided with their chalking mission, as well as Towson being school in the Maryland school system.

Andrea Constant noted that following the meeting and the chalking, students appeared to be more open with Glenn, have conversation and, overall, have friendlier relations. Constant also credited the multitude of other student organizations that supported and took part in the chalking.

In discussion about the meeting that took place on Sunday, Gourdin pointed out that while the Director of the University’s Center for Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is out on medical leave, only Caucasian members of the faculty were present. While the University’s ethnic diversity among the undergraduate population is above the national average with 55.3% White students and 30.8% as Black or African American, according to collegefactual.com, the diversity among the faculty is below the national average with 88.8% White and 3.1% Black or African American represented. Gourdin noted that Frostburg recruits diverse students, but does not have the staff to support them, which an issue that affects the campus climate in regards to diversity and inclusion.

Frostburg State is the “cultural hub for Western Maryland,” and the institution represents diversity in Allegany County. Constant said that the chalking was a “beacon of hope and students needs to continue to have power to shed some light.” Furthermore, Gourdin pointed out the importance of students understanding self-efficacy and “being aware of the environment that shapes you.” Students are a product of the institution they attend. She also clarified that there is a difference between working towards and working around, and the University needs to work towards diversity and inclusion rather than around the issue.

Constant concluded by saying that the Civil Rights Movement took decades of work before a change was made. It is not something that is going to be fixed over-night – it is one step at a time, but “this was a marker in a positive direction.”

*See article by Noah DeMichele, “Chartwells Receives Backlash Over Handwritten Internal Note,” for more background.