Diversity In Community Colleges

In a world that is becoming increasingly dynamic and interconnected where each of us are becoming more dependent on each other, diversity is a crucial element of life. Never in human history have students had available to them the

For two days, I observed the first ten individuals entering the Jones-Sampson building located on the JSU campus. Observing these individuals allowed me the opportunity to explore how diversity is perceived from a small sample of the campus. I believe, a college campus is the perfect setting to view the hop topic called diversity. The population at JSU includes people from various countries, social economic backgrounds, class, gender, occupations, and sexual-orientation. According to the Webster dictionary, diversity entails the quality or state of having different forms, types, and ideas about something. For the purpose of this observation, the first ten individuals encountered were evaluated based on both their similarities and differences. The factors observed

Racial diversity is something that is often discussed on college campuses. As a student who self-identifies as a minority in more ways than one I often feel like I have a pretty good understanding of the subject of racism and race. However, often times when these issue are discussed I learn something new; this was the case when reading the articles this week. This week’s articles examined the issue of race from different perspectives. This allowed me to re-examine the issue in a fuller manner; it also allowed me to question some of my own notions that I hadn’t really challenged before.

INTRO: Prompt: What should “diversity on campus” mean and why? Hook: Does diversity help liberate narrow-mindedness? What exactly is diversity? To say that diversity is approached on school campuses is an understatement to the level of understanding in this increasingly globalized world. By its definition, “diversity” requires inclusion. Are school’s really working toward the inclusion of everyone? This means including color, national origin, socio-economic status, and sexual orientation. Looking at court cases and polls shown in the short articles, “Introduction from Place, Not Race: A New Vision of Opportunity in America” and “The Trouble with Diversity: How We Learned to Love Identity and Ignore Inequality,” their approach to strengthening

In The New York Times, the article “The Lie About College Diversity.” by Frank Bruni discusses his theory on college diversity.  Bruni explains that colleges are trying to enhance their campus. The college fails to get these diverse groups to go outside their comfort zone and intermingle. There are places where these groups can go to feel comfortable like housing environments, groups, fraternities, and clubs.  However, they fail to go outside these groups. The colleges should help make it possible for these different diverse groups to interact, socialize, and drive cohesion. This will help college students integrate better into real-world diverse environments.

For many young adults, college is a time of great discovery as it presents them with an incredibly diverse assortment of people with whom they may mingle with. However, the mentally ill are often excluded from these interactions. Due to numerous misconceptions about their condition and the ensuing stigma that this creates, college students with a psychiatric disorder are left to endure unnecessary shunning from their peers. Fortunately, some universities have taken it amongst themselves to prevent this injustice from occurring, a prime example of which is the New Diversity Initiative program.

Diversity on college campuses has increased, which has let people assume that racism decreased and acceptance expanded gradually, however minorities still face prejudice and discrimination. Harvard University presented a research where they gathered college students from 4 particular public universities and questioned them about the social behavior they have experienced or witnessed. In the contrary, they discovered that college students have encountered racist comments or negative facial expressions towards them from Caucasians (Caplan, page 31). This has led to propositions for instance, improving social conduct between children in school, more gratification in regard to one’s culture and positive outlook toward the culture of others because America’s obsession with race and racial attitudes continues to affect individuals emotionally. It is urgent to spread diversity at a younger stage of life, for upcoming children that are starting school. The need of role models around the nation is necessary and relevant to help multicultural education in the schools. Diversity has become significant since people all over the country are passionate about others knowing where they come from and making it possible of a more diverse society in the future.

Racial diversity is a term that describes the variety and nuances in the color of human skin. Throughout the course of education, students with darker colored skin experience discrimination and are not granted the opportunities they deserve. “As the United States becomes more racially and ethnically diverse, institutions…are [asked] to prepare students to live and work in an increasingly multicultural society” (Jones 249). The article describes research done in 2008 that investigates the relationship between racial diversity and community college normative campus climate. This research is important because the majority of research done within the heading of diversity and campus climate are focused on 4-year colleges (Jones 251, 259). The critical

Data serves as a tangible evidence source of a lack of diversity. “In a community that is 59% Hispanic, the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2015), report reveals over 82% of the faculty and staff at FPU are white. The gap in the number of diverse faculty, inadequate faculty engagement, and a disjointed approach to diversity across the school are all contributing factors to the current issue of diversity” (Cochran, 2015).

To help schools provide a good self-assessment on diversity Robert Shireman (2003) suggested 10 poignant questions colleges and universities need to ask when reporting their progress on diversity. The first question is to ask how the institution defines diversity and if their definition has a focus on gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability and other factors? The reason for the added focus is because, by just focusing on

Being at university is such an incredible experience because it gives you a sense of what the real world looks like. You shape yourself and allow the entire experience to decide the kind of human being you want to be. Make sure you take advantage of every opportunity to meet new people, share stories and laugh. Diversity is something that as students of NMMU, we should all strive for.

Diversity is an ongoing discussion in day-to-day life. Not many situations occur without diversity having a role. There are a multitude of topics that introduces or involves diversity, to include age, sex, race, gender, ethnicity and so on. Prior to participating in this Diversity Awareness class, I’ve always thought diversity was more geared around discrimination and racism. Through weekly readings and discussions, I have discovered that diversity is much broader than that. There are many countries that are mixed culturally

Diversity is one of the most important components of modern day society. Some people are more traditional and resist the new age of diversity in Modern America, not realizing that diversity is what brings forth new ideas and new ways of living to make the world better for everybody. Whether some like it or not, diversity is an inevitable thing in any society now, college campuses included. These diverse campuses lead to an extremely large spectrum of ideas, personalities, beliefs, and cultures. Without this diverse campus no college would flourish, for diversity itself is what makes many schools great. Although on the surface I'm not what one would call a diverse person, my diverse thoughts and ideas and personality would help this school.

In today 's world where the population, especially of the United States, is growing gloriously diverse, institutions of higher education must also reflect this aspect in their student body. The purpose of colleges and universities is to provide students with the education and experience they need to succeed after graduating as well as expand their thoughts and perspectives. Thus, they must create and maintain a similar environment in which students will live and work in the future. Although diversity has been emphasized as a priority for many schools, socioeconomic diversity is often disregarded. However, socioeconomic diversity plays an important role in developing the perspectives and minds of students. Thus, it is essential for the admission offices, especially of prestigious universities like the University of Pennsylvania, to recruit and admit more economically disadvantaged students as well as for the schools to meet the needs of and maintain those students.

In order to study the need of a racially and culturally diverse college campus, the journey and battles fought must be dicussed. While there is a lack of diversity on college campuses today, they are not completely devoid of people of color. However, there was a time when college campuses were one hundred percent Caucasian. Jonathan R. Alger, Jorge Chapa and a team of researchers conducted studies on various college classrooms. They then went on to publish their findings in a book titled Does Diversity make a Difference? The purpose of their paper was to discuss the importance of diversity and reveal the effects of non-diverse campus. They begin their book by taking a look into the history of diversity in America. The start of the Civil Rights movement along with President Lyndon B. Johnson’s war on poverty took place in the mid 1960s. These events forced the country to face the reality of the people of color in America. These Americans of color did not have equal access to education, jobs, housing, or other valued resources (Alger et al. 2000). College administrators and faculty were starting to understand the necessity of a diverse campus. The realized that people of color had just as much to offer to the United States as the Caucasian majority. During that time, “many higher education faculty members and administrators were deeply concerned that abandonment of race sensitive admissions and hiring, at a time when most minority groups continue to be unrepresented in higher education, will severely limit campus diversity and would undermine the learning environment for all students.” (Alger et al. 2000). Additionally, a lot of the traditionally white colleges and universities were provoked and questioned by the concerns of their students. The universities and colleges began to notice their inability to extend the same educational