Assumptions Baber (2014) repeatedly conveys assumptions or biases rooted in issues of power, privilege, and a lack of genuine interest by institutional leaders to directly address racial and ethnic disparities in STEM. This rhetoric is reflected in his findings from diversity program administrators, but presented without counterbalance from institutional leaders. Given the elimination of a greater institutional perspective, one can assume the opinions of institutional leaders and other policy makers whose practices were arguably under attack would likely be in conflict to Baber’s work and therefore, deemed inconsequential. In addition, Baber (2014) purported STEM diversity initiatives primarily focus on enrollment and completion numbers, with little or no investment in acknowledging impeding institutional or community norms. Such acknowledgement would ideally transform behaviors to enhance student success and the …show more content…
These assumptions and biases do not necessarily hinder the study, given its focus, but do constitute its limitations, which are presented in the concluding findings, strengths and weaknesses section …show more content…
The narrowly tailored participant group of diversity program affiliates as the primary data source generally supports Baber’s assumptions and findings. In utilizing interest-convergence, Baber states the findings considered three patterns that emerged from the data: a) the emphasis on compositional diversity or “increasing the numbers”, b) a cost-benefits approach toward diversity or “doing more with less”, and c) emphasizing benefits for faculty from majority populations or “what’s in it for me?” (p. 260-265). A table providing a breakdown of the number of participants by institutional pseudonym was the only visual aid used in this
Dr. Cephas Archie is the Diversity & Inclusion Program Coordinator for Houston Community College (HCC), where he assists in the implementation of the colleges 7 + campus Diversity & Inclusion Plan. Collaboratively working with all institutional stakeholders – both internal and external, Dr. Archie spearheads the institution’s diversity and inclusion efforts for the near 81,000 students, faculty and staff. As an employee of the Office of Institutional Equity at HCC, his efforts are accompanied by the college’s Diversity & Inclusion Council.
Supporting the success for diverse students on campus is just the beginning to make their experience as equal to that of the white community. Without positive campus attitude and without the recognition of what diversity brings to a school and a classroom, the system would not thrive and those of a different ethnic background will not be inclined to attend. The conclusion to Espinosa’s, Gaertner, and Orfields article is that college and university leaders
Three ways of gaining executive commitment to diversity are to gather data and to assess the organizations current commitment to diversity to show where and why there is a need for change. The development of diversity council can also garner executive support because it offers a way for executive members of an organization to have a dialog with other members of an organization about diversity. Systematic changes are also necessary such as hiring from a diverse roster of candidates when filling a position. (Moodian, 2009,
Affirmative action, and race-based admissions standards, are the best way to increase (or maintain) diversity at institutions of higher learning. In spite of its perceived flaws, it has increased the diversity at previously all-white institutions of higher learning, such as the University of Texas at Austin, and that diversity has allowed friendships to be formed that otherwise would not have been, has allowed students to learn from professors they otherwise would never have and allowed professors to learn from students from a wide variety of
Whether the University’s consideration of race is narrowly tailored to a principled, detailed diversification goal. A university’s approach, actions, and goals must be
A conversation needs to be had regarding the effects of diversity. Diversity in practical terms is the inclusion of people from different walks of life whether it be color, race, or heritage. This topic is one that is sensitive for many people because of the history attached to this subject. In the past decade there has been instances where the supreme court has had to address the topic of “Diversity” to justify this ongoing debate. Like in the supreme court, college campuses have also discussed diversity in their college for a multitude of reasons. Additionally, they too have found many reoccurring problems relating to diversity, which will be addressed in this paper.
Companies and educational institutions greatly benefit from the guidelines of affirmative action because they profit from the different ideas, work styles, and contributions unique to each diverse individual. As quoted in Paul Connors’s compilation, Affirmative Action, President of Columbia University, Lee Bollinger, addresses the importance of a diverse educational system by stating, “The experience of arriving on a campus to live and study with classmates from a diverse range of backgrounds is essential to students' training for this new world, nurturing in them an instinct to reach out instead of clinging to the comforts of what seems natural or familiar” (12-13). A statement by Southeastern Oklahoma State University further supports the idea that success in modern day society stems from diversity saying, “Our country is strong because of the rich diversity of our culture, not in spite of it” (Affirmative Action).
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
For over a century the University of Texas (UT) has served as a leading institution educating America’s leaders, however; the lingering effects of prior discrimination haunt the campus. Due to perceptions that UT’s environment is not supportive of underrepresented minority students, the University lacks diversity within its student body. Regardless, UT continues to receive an overwhelmingly selective applicant pool. However, without student diversity UT deems it difficult to perform its mission of providing superior educational opportunities while aiding the advancement of our society.
According to Obear and Martinez (2013), race caucuses “can be a powerful multicultural incentive to deepen the competencies of higher education administrators and student affairs practitioners to create equitable, inclusive campus environment for students and staff” (p. 79). This article discusses how diversity training targets racism on college campuses. Race caucuses can deepen the competences of higher education leaders by making it possible for them recognize racism, internalized dominance, internalized oppression, and its impact on personal and profession development within the institution. By using this type of methodology, universities are slowly seeing social and organizational change that eliminates racial barriers.
This study was limited due to the small sample size. Although the conclusions are valid, more research with a
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
In the article, “Making Difference Matter: A New Paradigm for Managing Diversity,” the authors David A. Thomas and Robin J. Ely state that the discrimination-and-fairness paradigm and the access-and-legitimacy paradigm are the ”perspectives that have guided most diversity initiatives to date.” (p. 80) Thomas and Ely took these two paradigms and came up with the learning-and-effectiveness paradigm, which combines the best of the discrimination-and-fairness paradigm and the access-and-legitimacy paradigm to create a paradigm that genuinely shows care to learn and understanding of diversity.
The first thing to acknowledge about diversity is that it can be difficult. In the U.S., where the dialogue of inclusion is relatively advanced, even the mention of the word “diversity” can lead to anxiety and conflict. Supreme Court justices disagree on the virtues of diversity and the means for achieving it. Corporations spend billions of dollars to attract and manage diversity both internally and externally, yet they still face discrimination lawsuits, and the leadership ranks of the business world remain predominantly white and male.
Within the core of many educational institutions, diversity is a commercial tacit. While every institution cannot offer the same kind of diversity, the endorsement of such exists through various definitions. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges define diversity through the various classes: race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, disability, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, and age (“Statement on Diversity”)