Sessions

CRLT Players sessions explore a range of topics related to advancing equity in higher education spaces. While the specifics change from session to session, almost all CRLT Players work contains the following: topic-specific framing and/or research, a performance intervention, and facilitated participant discussion, exploration, and reflection on what individuals and institutions can do to meet the concerns raised in the session. Sessions vary in length but the majority are 90 minutes to 2 hours.

Please contact us to start planning your event.

7 into 15

Several high-energy sketches prompt instructors to make their teaching more equitable.

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Act for Equity

An asynchronous module introduces instructors to equity-focused teaching elements through short performances.

Learn More ▶ 		Image from "Act for Equity" Presentation

Building Your Facilitation Technique Toolkit

A facilitator-led workshop generates reflection on participants’ responsibilities while facilitating and provides concrete tools to improve practice.  

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Chair's Role in Faculty Mentoring

Three perspective-shifting vignettes help participants explore how chairs can create a more positive climate for faculty mentoring.

Learn More ▶ 		Chair's Role in Faculty Mentoring

Conflict in the Classroom

A theatrical case study depicting an eruption of conflict in a college classroom encourages reflection on instructor identity, ethos, and pedagogical choice.

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Cultivating Academic Belonging

An alum recounts classroom experiences that negatively affected his mental health, inviting instructors to consider the ways they can cultivate belonging and promote student well-being.  

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Difficult Conversations

Role-play opportunities give academic leaders a chance to build their capacity to have difficult conversations.  

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Equity and Excellence in Tenure & Promotion Practices

Short authentic case studies spur participants to consider how they can practically address concerns about fairness and accountability that emerge during promotion and tenure review of their faculty colleagues.

Learn More ▶ 		Equity and Excellence in Tenure and Promotion Practices

Everything is Fine!: Mentoring to Support Graduate Student Mental Health

Four intersecting scenes between advisors and their advisees invite discussion on mentoring challenges and support opportunities for faculty who mentor grad students to develop their skills. 

Learn More ▶ 		Everything is Fine!: Mentoring to Support Graduate Student Mental Health

Faculty Advising Faculty

A performance depicting the dissimilar experiences of two assistant professors with the same mentor prompts thought on what makes (in)effective mentoring at the faculty level.

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Faculty Meeting: Navigating Departmental Politics

A sketch about a department seeking a new faculty hire allows participants to discuss what practices negatively impact equitable recruitment/hiring and department climate.

Learn More ▶ 		Faculty Meeting: Navigating Departmental Politics

Foundations of Mentoring

Participants become members of a live studio audience as faculty “contestants” compete in a hilarious and heartbreaking game show, propelling them to reflect on how they can best lay the groundwork for robust mentoring relationships.

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How Do We Begin: A Historical Reckoning with Anti-Black Racism at U-M

A rich play illuminating U-M’s complicated relationship to elitism and racial inequity prompts reflection on ways participants can pursue a racially just future.

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It's in the Syllabus

Four first generation college students share stories, prompting instructors to consider ways they can support this heterogeneous population and increase the chances of success for all of their students.

Learn More ▶ 		It's in the Syllabus and Other First Generation College Student Experiences

Managing Mentoring: Cultivating Successful Mentoring Relationships in STEM Labs

A set of shifting scenes in a lab group examine common challenges and productive possibilities for enhancing mentoring relationships.

Learn More ▶ 		Managing Mentoring: Cultivating Successful Mentoring Relationships in STEM Labs

Meeting the Dark

A candid multi-voiced performance invites communities into conversation about how they can best move forward together to address the challenges and opportunities of the current moment. 

Learn More ▶ 		Audience in a circular auditorium and two screens that say "Meeting the Dark"

Practical Applications of Facilitation Techniques

A facilitator-led workshop provides an opportunity for participants to consider various case studies related to challenging facilitation scenarios.

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Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda

A faculty member reflects on how he navigates risk and responsibility as he seeks to contribute to a positive climate where students and faculty can thrive.

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What Should I Do?

Role-play opportunities give instructors practice in using a straightforward four-step process to support students who may be experiencing challenges to their mental health.  

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You Don't Belong Here

A monologue focused on an alum’s complicated experience of non-belonging provides reflection opportunities on how communities can make systemic change.

Learn More ▶ 		Image from "You Don't Belong Here" presentation