in but not of

The Annual Educational Research Association (AERA) released a report at its annual meeting suggesting that as undergraduate students progress from under- to upperclassmen they become less interested in promoting racial understanding. As an educator and a higher education professional, to label the report's summation disheartening is a dramatic understatement. I can think of no co-curricular knowledge more pertinent to the development of college students than that of understanding, racial or otherwise.

The study reasons that the lack of development stems from students having poor initial experiences with diversity, causing them to shy away from such experiences during the duration of their undergraduate educations. This supports the idea that admitting a diverse class of students is but a small, yet undeniably paramount, first step to promoting racial understanding on a college campus. And as an admission professional, is it this first step with which I am concerned.

College campuses in the United States continue to be environments in which various ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic populations are vastly underrepresented. Despite being touted as diverse environments, it's difficult to cultivate understanding and transform perspectives of other's backgrounds when students' experiences are limited to what is and has been familiar to them. This is also reinforced by the AERA study, which indicates that underrepresented students do achieve more growth in racial understanding than their majority peers.

Ultimately, we must make sure our institutions are truly diverse environments bringing together students from a broad spectrum of backgrounds. It's too easy for over-represented students to avoid developing understanding when they can avoid interactions with underrepresented students. Interactions with those different from oneself is a vital learning experience and one that should be fostered in any higher education setting. To achieve this, we need better curricular and co-curricular programs, inclusive attitudes, and a reduction in the extent by which underrepresented students are underrepresented.

Visualization is an important motivator. Prospective students from underrepresented demographic groups need to see themselves on our campuses to make them want to be here. And once they are here, inclusion must be a real part of their experiences, not a perk reserved for the majority. Again, this is achieved through developing programs, fostering positive attitudes, and providing sufficient access.

This is not to say we must go out of our way to anger the anti-affirmative action activists - however, we should anger the anti-affirmative action activists. Rather, it is a statement in support of doing more to recruit, admit and enroll underrepresented students to all of our campuses. The most important lessons we learn in life are from each other, especially as college students, and such learning is at its apex in diverse environments. Racial understanding is one of these lessons, and it is unacceptable for our students to graduate from our schools without developing it.