University seeks increase in diversity on campus

As of Spring 2010, there were only 488 black and 194 Hispanic students out of the 6,357 students enrolled at GCSU, which is 11 percent of the total enrolled student population. This Fall, there were 38 blacks and 69 Hispanics in the 1100 incoming freshmen.

“The lack of diversity effects the quality of an education,” President Dorothy Leland said. “We want to educate our students to be leaders in a multicultural environment.”

The 20 to 25 percent minority composition that the Office of Admissions considers to be significant enough to change the campus landscape is far from here.

“A turn off for many black students that look to enroll at GCSU is the lack of a visible presence of the black and Hispanic students on campus,” said Javier Francisco, associate director of enrollment management.

Historically, black students could not attend the same institutions as white students. This is why universities grouped as historically black colleges and universities were created, to provide institutions where blacks could gain an education. Competition from HBCUs, including Morehouse and Spelman, and larger schools like the University of Georgia and Georgia State University provides more options for black students who are academically successful. These universities recruit those students and make minority enrollment more difficult for GCSU.

“This turns off possible minority students. They may not see an environment that they can thrive in, and GCSU may not have the social network they are looking for,” Admissions Counselor Emmanuel Little said.

Little and Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership Edward Hill created the African-American Male Initiative to promote the image of black men on campus.

Enrolled freshman Jose Ibarra, formerly UGA bound, said he saw the lack of diversity as a potential for him to succeed at GCSU.

“I am here to promote college diversity, to represent Latino men on campus, in which we have the power to create a voice,” he said.

This year GCSU is implementing programs on campus to encourage minorities to attend the school. G.L.I.M.P.S.E. Day, Academic Shadow Day and the Latino Student Experience invite minority students from Marietta, Gainesville and Middle Georgia areas to spend a day with enrolled minority students attending GCSU.

“The message we sell to these students is that their chance of graduating will increase because of the amount of people that want them to succeed,” Francisco said.

There are plans of creating an ethnic retention center for minorities that will provide multipurpose resources for students. Though the black and Hispanic numbers are a small percentage, there are plans to change GCSU’s campus landscape and increase the influence of minorities.

Posted by Alexandria Bell on Oct 1 2010. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.