Daniel Williams/Collegian
Associate Professor of French Marie-Claire Morellec embraces diversity in her classroom.
Marie-Claire Morellec, associate professor of French, has lived in France, Belgium, Holland, Oregon, Minnesota, and now Michigan. Morellec teaches French to what she considers a student body of “limited diversity.”
While Morellec does not consider the college’s lack of ethnic diversity a problem, she takes care to respect political and philosophical diversity as well.
“Our students need to be aware of ‘the other,’” Morellec said. “Looking at the other is looking at yourself, the first step is respecting the other.”
Morellec compares nearly 30 years of American living to her French birthplace and other homes.
“When you’re not from the country in which you live, you become much more critical of both,” Morellec said. “You know two different ways and value both of those ways. All of the places I’ve lived have brought me something, some way of seeing people, of looking at things. That’s essential.”
Morellec said she strives for a politically-neutral classroom setting.
“I don’t believe college is a club where members have the same agenda,” Morellec said. “College is a place of debate where students find things that open your mind—not restrict or close it.”
She believes diversity of opinion and experience encourages better debates on college campuses.
“As a professor, that is my job, not to convert …(but) to teach, discuss, to share, to listen, to help; it is not to indoctrinate,” Morellec said. “I feel comfortable at Hillsdale that I can teach. I’ve never felt that I couldn’t teach in my classes.”
Gary Wolfram, professor of economics, agrees the college has the right approach to diversity of thought in the classroom as aided by the selection of faculty.
“Once a college has a reputation, the people that apply know whether they’ll be comfortable; there is a self-selection,” Wolfram said.
He said the college has succeeded in hiring faculty open to debate, even if traditional measures of diversity are limited.
“I think for the most part people are happy here,” Wolfram said.
Morellec is one example of the diversity of faculty members. For her, diversity is not only worthy of encouragement, but necessary.
“We don’t have a choice to be diverse or not, the world is diverse,” Morellec said. “If we believe in freedom we have to embrace the choice.”