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EDITORIAL: State of diversity complex
Editorial | 10/9/07
Posted online at 9:46 PM EST on 10/8/07
/ Last updated at 2:50 AM EST on 10/8/07
Associate Dean of Student Life in Support of Diversity Jamele Adams summed up the state of Brandeis' diversity when he said:
"We can do better, but we are not doing hardly bad at all."
This sentence speaks not only to the attitudes toward diversity that permeate the campus, but also to how the subject is portrayed by the administration. There are many racial minority students who have reported feelings of isolation on our majority white campus, yet recent statistics in a diversity survey could lull the community into a sense of complacency. If this doublespeak sentence says anything, it's that it's difficult to understand exactly what the state of diversity at Brandeis is.
Mr. Adams tried his best to make sense of this topic in his recent State of Diversity address and provided the campus with some very interesting figures from his recent survey.
The results of the survey, taken by 536 undergraduate students, went against several well-known stereotypes about Brandeis. For instance, around 60 percent of respondents said they have had a "rich social life" and 65 percent feel comfortable expressing their opinions, even when their opinions may seem unpopular. Especially promising is the answer to the question, "Has Brandeis exposed you to groups different than your own?" Nearly 95 percent responded in the affirmative. These responses could reflect the University's recently successful efforts to diversify, as minority enrollment increased by 9 percent this year (up to 24 percent); more classes on gender, ethnic and religious identity are offered every year; and cultural activities fill the my Brandeis calendar.
Still, the statistics can be misleading. While 84 percent of students in the survey said they are comfortable expressing their racial background, the students who reported feeling uncomfortable could have easily been all of minority backgrounds.
Another alarming statistic says that 33 percent are neutral on whether Brandeis is committed to diversity. If that's true, we have a long way to go.
"We can do better, but we are not doing hardly bad at all."
This sentence speaks not only to the attitudes toward diversity that permeate the campus, but also to how the subject is portrayed by the administration. There are many racial minority students who have reported feelings of isolation on our majority white campus, yet recent statistics in a diversity survey could lull the community into a sense of complacency. If this doublespeak sentence says anything, it's that it's difficult to understand exactly what the state of diversity at Brandeis is.
Mr. Adams tried his best to make sense of this topic in his recent State of Diversity address and provided the campus with some very interesting figures from his recent survey.
The results of the survey, taken by 536 undergraduate students, went against several well-known stereotypes about Brandeis. For instance, around 60 percent of respondents said they have had a "rich social life" and 65 percent feel comfortable expressing their opinions, even when their opinions may seem unpopular. Especially promising is the answer to the question, "Has Brandeis exposed you to groups different than your own?" Nearly 95 percent responded in the affirmative. These responses could reflect the University's recently successful efforts to diversify, as minority enrollment increased by 9 percent this year (up to 24 percent); more classes on gender, ethnic and religious identity are offered every year; and cultural activities fill the my Brandeis calendar.
Still, the statistics can be misleading. While 84 percent of students in the survey said they are comfortable expressing their racial background, the students who reported feeling uncomfortable could have easily been all of minority backgrounds.
Another alarming statistic says that 33 percent are neutral on whether Brandeis is committed to diversity. If that's true, we have a long way to go.
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