#sfsu_school_of_art

[vicdelarosa]

PERSONAL INVENTORY IN ACADEMIA

TO-DO LIST: DECOLONIZE ART

It is the month of May and college students are graduating across the U.S. It has me thinking of the completion of my graduate studies and my goals at the time: get a full-time tenure-track teaching position, continue creative activity and seek change in the diversity of the professorate in studio art. Some I have accomplished – I reached the top level of the teaching field, I am finishing my first academic year as a Full Professor and although I would like more access to jacquard weaving equipment my creative career continues to be engaging – but the last goal still seems far out of reach.

The arts, usually at the lead in terms of cultural change, is lagging in the area of diversity in many categories across the spectrum of art production, education, and curation. Representation is a conversation taking place everywhere now, it is heavy in the air, but the arts are behind and seemingly stuck.

My teaching institution, San Francisco State University, is straggling and losing ground: when I started there were five faculty of color across disciplines now we are three. Art history curriculum has never included courses in Mexican or Chicano art to anyones memory, and the closest to African art, Cuba, has not been taught since 2009. The SF State Art department simply has not and does not mirror the student population we serve.

My idea of diversity is not one of quotas but simply that any institution reflect the community it serves, in all the variety and differences in the community population itself. Given distributions of U.S. populations, this may be a different experience in Utah than it might be in Florida.

In California, the SF State student demographic mirrors the state demographics for this age group. The breakdown on our own university website cites 37% Latino/Chicano/Mexican-American, 30.9% Asian/Pacific Islander, 5.9% African American, 19.4% White Non-Latino. In terms of campus faculty diversity, the percentages cited are 7% Latino/Chicano/Mexican-American, 24% Asian/Pacific Islander, 4% African American, 56% White Non-Latino. The university has much more work to do in reflecting the community it serves and the SF State Art department lags behind further still.

One goal for institutions of higher learning is to educate and engage its populace in endeavors such as college teaching itself. Role modeling has proven to be a major factor in student graduation rate. There are many ways to successfully role model but at my institution faculty diversity is a major gap.

I have tried working within the system, made suggestions in faculty meetings, asked questions of the Dean in all-college meetings but my graduate school goals are further out of reach that I imagined. I need to turn up the volume and expand the discussion. My institution has much work to do in terms of diversity and reflecting the community it serves…. how is yours doing?

#sfstateartdeptsowhite

#decolonizeart

http://puboff.sfsu.edu/sfsufact/archive/1718/students

http://puboff.sfsu.edu/sfsufact/archive/1718/facstaff

[vicdelarosa]

I decided to do a few designs based on my very recent experience navigating the world. I usually don’t but myself into my work so directly but thought it was time. This design based on recent faculty meeting experiences.