What is Towards Liberation Project?
Toward Liberation Project (TLP) founded by Dr. Rodney Bates, offers social justice workshops, curriculum development, small discussion facilitation, and diversity and inclusion consultation. Workshops are designed for students, staff, faculty, residential and business communities, student and professional employees, executive boards, corporate, federal, state, local, or new leaders and can be scheduled upon request.
Dr. Bates completed his Ph.D. in Adult and Higher Education. His research focuses on African American males’ experiences at historically white institutions, as well as on dominant and resistant notions of success in higher education.
Dr. Bates’s areas of interest include unpacking the inequality of student experiences, understanding important implications for broadening equity and inclusion for underrepresented populations, and student of color access to higher education. His research and practice speaks to the need to fully include marginalized students in institutional decision-making, curriculum development, and the day-to-day leadership and operations of our institutions. Dr. Bates’s research and professional activities continually focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Furthermore, he intentionally collaborates with students, faculty, and school practitioners on topics related to social justice, diversity, equity, education policy, access to higher education for traditionally underserved populations, and addressing inequities across the P-20 pipeline. He was involved in the creation of the Unlearning curriculum which is now being made available campus-wide and has been a tireless advocate for and supporter of OU undergraduate and graduate students. He has taught courses in the AFAM and WGS departments and was a consultant in 2016-17 for an NSF-NRT program on Broadening Participation in STEM Graduate Education.