Overview
Academia thrives on individualism and competition. What would it look like if we chose solidarity and collective action instead? This interdisciplinary working group of professors and students from Queens and Concordia–representing fields including Literature, Geography, Public Policy, History, Sociology, and others–will use the example of our respective institutions as a jumping off point for exploring the potential of collegial governance as a model and solution to neoliberal managerialism that might also address the political economy of contemporary universities. One particular focus of our readings and discussions will be on the promotion of institutional literacy among students and faculty, to both counteract the so-called “hidden curriculum” that hinders the progress of working-class and first-generation students, and also to empower university community to participate in meaningful decision-making. The goal of the working group is to combine historical, political, social and economic analysis both to understand how we got here and to creatively imagine better futures. All team members are dedicated to collectively envisioning a more just university.