Week 1- Yuanxin Zhang

Yuanxin Zhang
Section A01
Week 01

Honestly, I was very surprised to see how Professor Valverde fought for her tenure. I once thought the academic environment in the United State would grant more freedom and equality. When I read through the process where the other professor made up rumors and the process where the evaluation was unfairly taken, I somehow felt uncomfortable. It reminds me of the feeling when I talked with my African American professor. She led me to a blackboard, and then she used her finger to swipe on the board with blurry chalk dust, as a metaphor of a minority who dare to speak up. Then she used the dirty board eraser to wipe the board, and then the board became blurry again. She told me how the ruler wants the society to by a “unity” form, where some different voices should be muted. I was shocked at that time since I rarely thought about the life of minority in America. I got the similar feeling when I read through the whole process where Professor Valverde fought the tower. I was impressed by the bravery of individuals who are brave enough to speak up and I also hope to start thinking about such questions more deeply.

Question: I noticed some comments on RateMyProfessor.com about Professor Valverde being unorganized with the contents covered in the lecture. Personally, I believed the label used on RateMyProfessor.com tend to lead reviewers when writing the comments. How do you think about those comments? Have they been used against you during evaluation process? How do you think about the power of media with respect to the judgment to a person?

References:

Shutterstock.com [Digital image]. (n.d.). Retrived from https://www.shutterstock.com/video/clip-25927472-stock-footage-minority-rights-animated-word-cloud-text-design-animation.html

Valverde, K., (2013) “Fight the Tower”: A Call to Action for Women in Academia, 12(2), 367-419.