It has been brought to my attention -numerous times -that many minority students across Ohio University's campus are less than satisfied with the amount of diversity at OU. I understand what many of these students are saying, especially because I come from a background that is similar to the one they came from. Evidence of this fact is that some students have proclaimed to me that the Web site was misleading, because every time it loaded there would be a photo of a diverse group of students in the pictorial border.
After looking at the statistics of minority representation at OU, it is true that the percentage of minority students is lower than some places, but when were we supposed to judge a school solely on this factor? Yes, such a factor has to weigh in somewhat on the decision-making process of selecting a university, but there are also many other things that one has to look at. I'm attending OU because of the great academic programs that the institution has to offer. I was not worried about the gap between the number of white students and minority students when I enrolled because OU provided a great chance to meet different people and to learn new things about myself.
Currently, OU President Roderick McDavis is working on various plans not only to accommodate minority students when coming to Athens, but also to bring more in. The Urban Scholars program is a great idea because good students from urban areas now are feasibly going to be able to enjoy what this school has to offer.
The number of minority students will rise while McDavis is in office, and most likely afterwards when his time as president comes to an end. And such a feat will occur because of the things he is doing for the campus -the university is already seeing dividends from its efforts because enrollment for next year's freshmen class is up and so is the number of minority students.
Instead of worrying about the number of students that are of different races, why don't we embrace this opportunity to meet new people? Why don't we find the differences/similarities that make us who we are? We attend a school that has about 20,000 undergrads and a large incoming freshman class; it is certain that this group of students will be of all kinds of color, personalities, ethnicity, socio-economic class and other traits.
People from all over the world come to this school, and we know that people do not come to college just to learn about the subjects of school that interest us. Yes, we are here to educate ourselves in order to prepare for our futures in the working world, but at the same time we are here to enjoy what this campus has to offer -in essence, a different type of diversity. We are looking at the colors of the students on campus and noticing the differences. I push for the notion that we look at what makes a person who he or she really is, and that is beyond the visible surface. I would love to see more minority students on campus because this school is a great stepping stone into the world. And they should benefit from this campus just as much as I am and others have.
The opinions that I have set forth in this work are nothing new to me. Living in a predominately black neighborhood -but going through school systems in my later years that were attended mostly by white students -I've encountered both sides of the world, just as many others have. I never complained, but I appreciated the opportunity to meet different people. I became very concerned when I began taking my first summer class with Prof. Thomas Hodges. He was upset at the fact that many qualified minority students do not attend OU for journalism because of the lack of diversity on campus. The Scripps School of Journalism is one of the best programs in the country, so how can we keep letting something like diversity hold us back from this learning experience?
As the number of minority students increases, let's not forget to enjoy what this campus has to offer. Great life experiences, a chance to learn about different people and the educational benefits that we will take from here into our careers.
--Anthony Chambers is a staff writer for The Summer Post. Send him an e-mail at ac228804@ohiou.edu.
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