Keske: Does canceling class cancel university culture?

The announcement of an imminent verdict in Derek Chauvin’s trial arrived only minutes ahead of my three-hour Law, Policy, and Risk Management class at UC Merced.

I knew there would be historic implications for racial justice, policing and George Floyd’s family. A classic teaching dilemma was presented at the edge of a COVID-19 educational precipice. Do I cancel class? Professors have considerable discretion to cancel class when significant events juxtapose educational programming. But does canceling class during key historic events effectively “cancel” university culture?

Experiencing historic events together provides rare opportunities for discussion forums, intellectual development and social bonding. These are reasons why universities exist.

Previous experience cautioned me to not hold the lecture as usual. One colleague still speaks with regret about continuing to lecture after the first plane hit the World Trade Center, and with embarrassment, I recall being admonished by clients after returning phone calls as they awaited O.J. Simpson’s verdict. On the other hand, I understand students pay high tuition, and I’m committed to delivering what students pay for. Some students would feel disappointment if I canceled class. Should I just audio-record and upload a three-hour lecture?

I decided not to cancel class the afternoon of April 20. It turned out to be one of the most memorable classes of my teaching career. I hope the students also view it as another of the many valuable educational experiences at UC Merced.

I approach each class meeting with recognition that news spreads rapidly via student cell phones and social media. I’m always prepared to pivot classes because students routinely learn of high-impact current events during class. In recent years this has included wildfires, COVID-19 and tragic loss of human life. Also, our normal course material reflects intersectionality between law and economics, so tying into the Chauvin verdict was a bit easier than it would be in a chemistry class.

I carved time out from class for students to watch the scheduled event. Because class is virtual this semester, students could watch the verdict being read with their housemates and families. Under different circumstances, I likely would have streamed the event in the classroom.

Students returned to class at an agreed-upon time, and we had an open forum for student-led conversation. Many expressed gratitude for the opportunity to have an emotional download in a university setting. They expressed relief that justice had been served and offered thoughts about how society might better address racial equity.

One student commented that if we didn’t hold class he’d be sucked into social media, festering with emotion. He expressed gratitude for an opportunity for intelligent dialogue. Others noted that having class provided some sense of normalcy and comfort. We explored several academic and personal topics, with one student discussing economic disparity as a contributing factor to crime and two sharing their career aspirations for law school and law enforcement — part of their desire to facilitate systematic social change.

Students posed technical legal questions about the constitutional right to a fair trial and the criminal sentencing process. A discussion about prosecuting defendants individually versus as a group evoked “The Prisoner’s Dilemma,” classic economic game theory that deals with cooperation. We also approached the heady topic of restorative justice, where convicted criminals engage with victims and communities that they have harmed to facilitate healing and reform.

After the open forum, students were anonymously polled about whether they wanted to return to the planned lecture, a case study the teaching assistant prepared on California’s carbon offset program. The class was exactly evenly split at 50-50! Students were reassured that they had permission to leave class, that I’d upload PowerPoint slides and that they wouldn’t miss break-out room conversations. Approximately 80% of students remained for the entire class. In fact, several stayed afterwards to discuss how to approach difficult conversations about restorative justice while simultaneously showing respect for victims’ families.

Had I canceled class on Tuesday, I believe I would have canceled an important part of university culture. The university is a forum for the open exchange of ideas, critical discussion and tackling complex societal challenges. I cannot think of a more appropriate environment than the university for discourse about how to shape our society for the better.