An Open Letter of Kindness and Connection: An Op-Ed
Dear University of Minnesota Duluth Faculty,
We are four dedicated human service profession students and are writing to you today to discuss how kindness can be a grounding practice within the classroom for both students and faculty. Through our experience at UMD when professors take time to check in and show kindness to us as students it motivates us to attend class, seek help and invest in our studies. It also makes us feel like our feelings and concerns are understood within the classroom. With our research in class, we have learned that random acts of kindness have been shown to boost overall happiness and well-being for both students and faculty within the university setting. Today, more than 1⁄3 of UMD students have some sort of learning or mental health condition. Therefore, it is even more important today to incorporate kindness and mental health awareness into the classroom.
Through our research, we have found that in fostering an environment of kindness, students are more likely to have academic success, become involved within the classroom and have an overall more positive sense of well-being at college (Berkley Education Greater Good in Education). Kindness inside the classroom not only motivates students to want to learn and attend class, but also makes them feel as though they are wanted and belong in the classroom. Too often today students and professors are not connected and it creates a large divide between the two and discourages students from seeking help and attending class.
When college students engage in random acts of kindness towards others, it helps to create a more positive self-image for students (John-Tyler Binfet Ph.D College Students Kindness). This helps to build high self-esteem in college students especially when classes get demanding, intense and difficult to manage. The majority of students at UMD have to manage school, jobs and extracurriculars. This makes managing school work very difficult. When students feel acts of kindness and understanding coming from their professors, it makes them feel like they are better understood. This helps students to have a more positive outlook on their academic success. This also helps to create a better relationship between professors and students. It also helps to create a more positive college community.
The (University of Minnesota Duluth UMD Student Care) has already created a set of goals to encourage professors to be kind when professors are struggling. This is what the University of Minnesota Duluth has outlined for professors to do when they notice that a student is struggling. If we could incorporate more of these practices into the environment of UMD it would help for students to feel more accepted. These practices could also be applied to faculty. If you are a faculty member and notice a fellow faculty member struggling, it would be best to reach out to them and make sure that they are doing well. This would also help to create a more positive relationship among faculty members. It would also be beneficial for faculty members to become more aware of the Student Care practices to make sure that when you try to help out a student that is struggling you do it in a manner that is respectful and non-confrontational. This would help to create more positive student - professors relationships.
Therefore, we believe that within our own campus of the University of Minnesota Duluth, we can incorporate kindness into the classrooms and between students to foster a positive and healthy environment for all. Kindness can be as simple as asking a student how they are doing, to make connections and create a sense of community and belonging. We thank you greatly for the time to read this letter and would love to hear any feedback or suggestions you may have, and we are always available to answer any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Madison Schmitz, Audrey Urbanowicz, Elianna Johnson, Karen Mei
About the Authors: Audrey Urbanowicz and Madison Schmitz are both pursuing a Communication Sciences and Disorders degree almost through their sophomore year at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Karen Mei and Elianna Johnson are sophomores in the Integrated Elementary and Special Education program at the University of Minnesota Duluth. All are dedicated to their studies and promoting a healthy and inclusive environment for all.