Michelle Bellino and NCID organize webinar in response to an increase in anti-diversity movements in education

In response to growing anti-diversity movements across all levels of education, the University of Michigan National Center for Institutional Diversity (NCID) recently hosted “Miseducating the Public: Educators and students respond to anti-diversity movements,” a virtual panel discussion featuring professors and students from various institutions. The event, which drew 500 attendees, discussed anti-diversity movements within primary, secondary, and higher education.

Michelle Bellino, associate professor of Education and an event organizer, said the gathering was modeled on a past series from the NCID published in Spark magazine, “Miseducating the Public: Anti-CRT Movement, Rhetoric, Policy and Impact.” 

“We published the (first) series on January 31, 2023, and at the time the statistics about how widespread efforts were to prohibit discussions of race as well as gender and sexuality were startling,” Bellino tells The Michigan Daily. “Yet, here we are a year later, and the situation has intensified. The scope of the censorship has broadened.”

For this gathering, Bellino advocated to center youth voices in the program and facilitated a conversation with high school and college students about how these initiatives are impacting their education and communities. She told The Daily that organizers intended for attendees to leave the webinar being able to make calls to action and find a new sense of community.

“We want attendees to identify practical calls to action that make a difference in their communities,” Bellino said. “We are also hoping to foster a sense of community for those affected by anti-diversity efforts in a politically divisive climate."