“I think that Dr. Mason excelled in pushing students to be open–minded and think about race and racism in a way that most of us had not prior to this class. I have certainly learned more from this class than any other that I have ever taken, and I appreciate that the pursuit of knowledge seemed to come before grades. I think class discussion was imperative to that journey, as we were all able to talk through these new ideas and process that together. Overall, this was a transformative class, and Dr. Mason made herself available to us and gave us both the space and guidance to work through some really important, life–altering concepts.”

-Student, College of William & Mary

“Wow––I don't think I've never learned so much in any semester. Taking Civil Rights Lit. with Professor Mason changed my life. The exploration of race(ism) and racecraft in such a variety of literature was fascinating. I think the syllabus was very well organized; I appreciated the separation of readings into different genres. I thought class discussion was fruitful, and when students weren't participating, Professor Mason would quickly step in to make us think. She is a shockingly open, honest, and friendly person, and that was extremely beneficial in helping me absorb the material.”

-Student, College of William & Mary

“Dr. Mason's greatest strength is creating a classroom where students feel comfortable to participate. This includes guiding us when we reach conclusions about a work that are harmful or otherwise betray the intent of the content, in turn preventing ourselves from understanding the full scope of the work. She encouraged us to push our limits, consider our processes when reviewing literature, and try to see the bigger picture through our class discussions. In larger classes, student participation can be stunted, normally conducted by a handful of students. However, almost everyone had the opportunity to speak or participate after engaging with the material, which allowed the class to have very rich discussions.”

-Student, College of William & Mary

“Dr. Mason's communication and openness to questions and concerns from students is absolutely fantastic, and her teaching style fits the complex nature of the material we were studying and all of the other things it relates to. The balance of socratic–style discussion and lecturing was perfect and helped to facilitate really deep and meaningful discussions. Overall 15/10, would absolutely take another class with her if I had the opportunity.”

-Student, College of William & Mary

“Dr. Mason is, above all else, extremely adept at leading her students to think outside the box and step outside of their respective ideological comfort zones. We hid from nothing in this class, and instead engaged with centuries of history and radical thought. Despite the course's "radical" tenets, though, Professor Mason never once strong–armed students into blindly accepting her assertions or parroting her individual points of view. Instead, disagreement and thoughtful debate were front and center throughout the semester. I can say with complete sincerity that this class has had a significant impact on my thinking and led me to consider viewpoints that I had never even been introduced to, much less understood.”

-Student