The Dismantling Racism Project: Change Through Radical Programming

Abstract

Working collaboratively, a three-person team of student researchers developed The Dismantling Racism Project: Change through Radical Programming to reimagine the University of South Florida’s first-time-in-college student experience through a series of “What if?” scenarios. The project adheres to the tenets of critical race theory (CRT) to challenge dominant ideology with an eye toward social justice—an aim that is stifled by the underrepresentation of people of African, Native, and Latin American descent. While the project uses the University of South Florida as its real-world laboratory, others could institute it elsewhere following the model provided: (a) firsttime-in-college student orientation programming that sets a stage for anti-racism education, (b) required general education courses that dismantle racism, and (c) collaborative ceremonies constructed through nontraditional power sources.