Dr. Jacueline Battalora's 52 Weeks Developing Whiteness Competency Course

What Is The Whiteness Competency Course?

WHITENESS

According to sociologist Ruth Frankenberg, (1993, 1997) whiteness is a position of structural advantage and a standpoint from which white people view both themselves and others as well as the world around them. It also refers to cultural practices that are often unmarked and unnamed and that serve to elevate white people over people of color.

COMPETENCE

Defined as “the state of being fit or capable” (Webster’s Dictionary 1969).

WHITENESS COMPETENCY – the ability to see positions of structural advantage that whites hold; the ability to identify the standpoint from which white people view themselves and others and the world around them; and the ability to see the racially unmarked and often unnamed cultural practices that serve to elevate white people over people of color.

You will be sent a message each week (for 52 weeks) with an assignment- something to notice, to pay attention to, to search on-line, to read, to think about, to explore, etc……. You will regularly be asked to journal as a means to reflect and process following a particular exercise. Grab a pen or keyboard!