MADISON, Wis. – Officials at the University of Wisconsin-Madison want a captive audience of students to absorb their message about racial and cultural diversity.
So they are considering a plan to reach the students when they are least likely to flee due to boredom or indifference – when they are going to the bathroom.
MORE NEWS: From Classroom to Consulate Chef: Culinary Student Lands Dream Job at U.S. Embassy in Paris
That’s right. The university is considering installing a so-called “Stall Seat Journal” on the backs of doors in toilet stalls in campus restrooms, and above urinals. The written message would address racial and cultural diversity on campus, and the perceived need for more sensitivity when it comes to those issues.
Amazingly, some people think the tactic might be effective because it would not be “an obvious diversity effort.”
The Stall Seat Journal was just one of more than 100 ideas submitted to the university, after officials put recently put out a general call for proposals that would help “curb hate and bias incidents” and help “students of all races, religions and ethnic origins feel more valued and welcome on campus,” according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
University officials were prompted to seek the proposals following student protests in recent months over the racial climate on campus, the newspaper reported.
The issue became even more heated in recent weeks following several incidents that reportedly involved racial slurs, according to Madison.com.
“We’ve heard loud and clear from people they don’t want a lot more talk; they want action,” UW-Madison spokeswoman Meredith McGlone was quoted as saying.
MORE NEWS: Know These Before Moving From Cyprus To The UK
The person who submitted the bathroom proposal believes it would be “cheesy, informal and fun” to confront students with information about race and multiculturalism while they are sitting on the toilet, according to the Journal Sentinel.
One university professor even believes it would be a subtle way of broaching the subject.
“Because it’s informal and fun, it could be an effective tool to encourage students to listen to each other and learn because it’s not an obvious diversity effort, said Laura Albert McLay, an associate professor of industrial and systems engineering,” the Journal Sentinel article said.


Join the Discussion
Comments are currently closed.