Reflections on my student experience

As one of less than 1% of Indigenous doctoral students at Stanford, I was familiar with many of the themes and topics we addressed throughout this course. From microaggressions to feeling as though you had to represent all experiences and views of the communities you are a part of, being a part of an underrepresented group can be a lonely and isolating experience. It was a desire to address these inequities that drew me to take the course “Designing an Anti-Racist Stanford.” This was my first time being introduced to design school principles and approaches. Our classroom acted as a microcosm of the university environment with representation from students to staff, faculty and postdocs. During our early meetings, I was particularly struck by the teaching team’s emphasis on collaboration and staying open to new ideas. After many years of organizing and learning what works and what does not, it can be tempting to dismiss an approach as unworkable. This course forced us to move beyond those initial reactions to see what can happen when we build on and expand each other’s efforts rather than dismiss them.

Designing Toward an Anti-Racist Stanford taught me a lot about the power of vulnerability. In our classroom spaces, we were invited to reflect upon our own experiences. I have had many difficult and painful experiences with racism in educational spaces. I have continued on in my studies because I believe that the communities I am a part of can be best served with the skills I am developing as a researcher. So often Indigenous peoples have been studied and had narratives created about them which is a particular kind of harm. Indigenous peoples should not have to endure educational spaces that are assimilative or dismissive of Indigenous approaches to learning and research. It is not enough for Indigenous peoples to obtain higher education credentials if they are changed by the negative experiences they have while pursuing those degrees. I never want other Indigenous students who come after me to share the experiences I have had. It was in this classroom community where vulnerability was welcomed, that we were able to see the commonalities we had among our identities and our common commitment to make lasting change.