Community Guidelines

This is a community where everyone has something to learn from everyone else, both faculty and students. You’ll encounter concepts, theoretical frameworks, and research approaches that are very different from what you’re familiar with. What is unfamiliar might seem incomprehensible or even incorrect. Please keep the following guidelines in mind when interacting with other students and faculty, especially those who are different from you in their academic or personal background:

• Don’t assume that someone shares your assumptions or jargon: ask questions to find out.
• Approach conversations with humility: while you may know more about some things, chances are they know more about something else.
• Invite people to teach you about what they know, rather than merely providing critiques based on your perspective.
• Keep your relative power in mind (whether based on your personal identity or your position in the university hierarchy), and use it to support people rather than put them down.
• Introduce yourself and provide context (e.g. department, pronouns) when you’re giving a talk, asking a question, or meeting someone new.
• Respect any requests or boundaries set by the person you’re interacting with.
• Follow any guidelines set by a presenter about questions during their talk.
• Give them the kind of feedback they ask for (not necessarily the kind you think is most important).
• Use their requested pronouns.