<p>Sometimes people of one race just hang out with people from another race. Socioeconomic factors here/
But corralling them into a residence hall? We’re not cattle! <em>stops eating grass on school lunch</em></p>
<p>At one of the admitted student days my D attended last April, we looked around and saw nothing but white faces. She saw this as a strong negative. Now I’m thinking maybe there were other days specifically for minorities, but then we thought “wow, this is not a diverse school environment!”</p>
<p>I concur w/Moosey that, IMHO, there are more things to be worried about than a schools efforts at these multicultural events. Like Northstarmom, I attended and rec’d an experience that perhaps, wasn’t intended.</p>
<p>I’m Asian and grew up in a predominantly African American school district. Going to my school’s program allowed me for the first time, to really interact with lots of Asians! My natural leaning was with the other black kids (who viewed me as the Chinese kid from inner city Detroit) so that was fine. I didn’t experience any culture shock and eased into college life but as I said in my post above, I definitely saw some kids who needed an extra hand as Ivy league freshmen – away from their previous situations.</p>
<p>Is it weird? I can understand why some people feel so. My older brother questioned this vehemently. His take was “why does the school feel you need extra help? Are you handicapped in some way?” Honestly, I felt I didn’t need the extra exposure (like NSM’s first son) but frankly, just went and had a ball – hanging around campus and exploring before the huge crush of other students.</p>
<p>I see it as innocuous but can understand why people feel it’s “weird”. For me, it was just one of those textured items in our complex effort to understand race/culture in our American society.</p>
<p>A lot of minorities at these colleges are going from an environment where they are surrounded by other minorities, to a college environment where they are one of the few people there of their race. </p>
<p>These things just help them get acclimated into that new environment. It can be a culture shock going from a place like inner city Baltimore with a 90% black population, all the way to the steps of an Ivy League university. </p>
<p>And even if you are used to an environment with a majority white population in your hometown, it can always be a little comforting to see other minorities or people who could relate with you culturally. </p>
<p>Remember that as a minority, when you’re in high school, even if your friends and everyone around you are white, you at least have your family to come home to and share experiences with. But in some colleges, it’s possible to go for days without speaking to another person of your race. Some people would like to retain that cultural backbone when they go to college by forming connections with other minorities. It doesn’t mean they won’t form strong friendships with people outside their race as well… it just means that they think it’s important to form strong friendships with people of their race also.</p>
<p>We were very surprised and a bit put off of by the invitations for multiculteral days and regular open house. We found it very racist. My son is planning on rooming with a friend who is a minority and this boy has been invitated to extra activities, etc by the college. It is making his friend feel very uneasy about the whole thing and as he said a little creeped out.</p>
<p>5555: Obviously I don’t know the language in your son’s friend’s invites. However, consider the scenario I mentioned earlier. If your son’s friend was a returning veteran, and got a package of invites to all sorts of extra events, would this non-ethnic distinction have been so off-putting?</p>
<p>What I’m suggesting (and it’s only a suggestion since it’s completely possible that the wording is clumsy and insensitive) is that your reaction is similar to my older brother’s – based more on perspective than malicious intent for segregation. Is that possible?</p>
<p>While the other guy is a little creeped out, can you imagine that some kids will really benefit from the event? As I said, I didn’t feel I needed any “extras” but clearly met kids who did at my Ivy alma mater that Freshman year.</p>
<p>"A lot of minorities at these colleges are going from an environment where they are surrounded by other minorities, to a college environment where they are one of the few people there of their race. </p>
<p>These things just help them get acclimated into that new environment. It can be a culture shock going from a place like inner city Baltimore with a 90% black population, all the way to the steps of an Ivy League university. "</p>
<p>Most URM students at places like Ivies did not come from schools in which they were in the vast majority. They really don’t need segregated orientations.</p>
<p>The people who could benefit from specialized orientations are first generation college students, very low income students, and, yes, URMs who will be going to mainstream universities after attending secondary schools and living in neighborhoods with only people of their race.</p>
<p>To think, though, that all URMs attending mainstream universities need such programs, however, is insulting.</p>
<p>Heck, some white students at such schools have never been around URMs or international students before. Why not have a special orientation to acclimate those white students to living in a diverse environment?</p>
<p>I understand many comments listed. In my classes ( honors, Ap, prep, etc…) I’m surrounded by a very diverse group, with little notice of any dominant ethinic race. I also associate with all ethinic races. I just wouldn’t see the need for to take such invitation.</p>
<p>I’ve been to two of these events (one Latino and one multicultural). I really enjoyed them. Growing up in Alabama, I wasn’t around a lot of Hispanics and in my IB classes I don’t interact with them since I am the only one in my class. These programs were interesting in that I got to meet people with similar interests and aspirations from schools I am possibly attending. It’s a good feeling to not be the only one anymore.</p>
<p>Wake Forest has an accepted student “Multi-Cultural” overnight before accepted students day. It offered to students of “Multi-Cultural” background. My D has decided to just attend the accepted students day with everyone else and skip the overnight.</p>
<p>I was never knew of this and think it is completely unnecessary. I’m black and feel comfortable in almost any situation especially being a minority amongst another race.</p>
<p>^Congratulations, some people don’t.</p>
<p>But either way, the minority experience is different at these schools than a nonminority experience. It’s helpful that those who want it have the opportunity to feel out the minority experience at a school. Additionally, for black and hispanic students in particular, if they grew up in an area where they may have been the only african american or hispanic high-achieving students in their classes, it would be incredibly helpful to have the opportunity to connect with other high achieving black and hispanic students. This may be there first time having the opportunity to plug into the educated and intellectual black/hispanic community. </p>
<p>I am also certain that these days are open to white students who strongly desire to attend.</p>
<p>Wow, lots of replies. I continue to have tons of homework. Two quick things to clarify from skimming, though:</p>
<p>(1) I heard that Mt. Holyoke has a white-only day, but what I meant to imply in my original post is that by sorting out the different minorities into specialized programs, the remaining “normal” admitted students day ends up just being the people who aren’t unique enough to get their own program. (Not being bitter, but isn’t that right? As a white student, there are too many other people of the same skin color for me to receive some sort of special invitation.)</p>
<p>(2) “I wish that colleges would understand that just because a student is black, Hispanic or Native American doesn’t mean that they need help adapting to college or a predominantly-white environment.” This hits the nail on the head for me. Many of my friends are “URMs” (I am not) and have expressed similar feelings–it seems that by automatically reaching out and giving special care to minorities, schools are assuming that they need the extra help.</p>
<p>(3) atom<em>and</em>eve, you’re correct and I retract my statement. I do not believe that the action of segregating admitted student days is an act of racism if you define it as the belief that one race is superior, etc. That word slipped out in an inappropriate context and I’m glad someone called me on it… what I was trying to express was that schools seem to discriminate to a certain extent by assuming that all minorities actually need special guidance just because they are minorities. Also, as a non-URM, it feels as if I am a less precious addition to their campus simply because I’m white. A few schools, including Emory, Lehigh, and I think Penn also notified a lot of their URM’s of their acceptances sooner than non-URMs to invite them to a special multicultural weekend/scholarship/etc. It begins to feel that because of my skin color I am less of an asset–or at least that is what seems to be implied, in some ways.</p>
<p>I highly value diversity, but to what extent can you define it simply by skin color? And what is diversity even worth to a campus if you still feel the need to draw lines between different races?</p>
<p>If I may reply</p>
<p>1) the white-only day at Holyoke turns out to be a straw-man. As I linked, there is no such thing – only one discussion forum (among five) where white identity is being discussed. How that became a “whites only” orientation program is beyond me
2) “it seems that by automatically reaching out and giving special care to minorities, schools are assuming that they need the extra help.” How can an institution develop a program and not advertise it? How is inviting people to participate assuming that they need extra help? Why assume the sinister? By saying there’s a community suicide hotline, are we inciting suicide?</p>
<p>I liked the experience. I think that while some minorities dislike being singled out, some, like myself, like the experience of being with other high-achieving hispanics. If you don’t want to go, don’t go.</p>
<p>I like that schools give you the option of attending or not, depending on how comfortable you feel as a minority. I haven’t yet gone to the multicultural students event I was invited to, but I think I will enjoy it for the reason that I can meet people of very interesting origins, seeing as I have spent high school in a predominantly Asian community. However, I do understand SugarMagnolia’s point in that it makes white students feel “less of an asset.” Perhaps schools should also invite white students to programs where they highlight diversity, not just showcase those who are “diverse.”</p>
<p>“Many of my friends are “URMs” (I am not) and have expressed similar feelings–it seems that by automatically reaching out and giving special care to minorities, schools are assuming that they need the extra help.”</p>
<p>Yes, that’s what ticks me off. The students may have been very confident beforehand, but once the college gives them a special program with all sorts of extra tips and help on how to succeed in college (and I’ve never seen a minority college orientation program that didn’t include such info), the students may feel that they aren’t as capable as are non URM students.</p>
<p>Most students go to college having some concerns about how they’ll handle the first major transition in their lives. No matter what race a student is, they also may have extra challenges such as if they came from a dysfunctional family, are very poor, are first generation college, are disabled, have a learning disability, are shy, etc. However, colleges assume that most students don’t need more support than what the school already is offering through its various support services including its regular orientation.</p>
<p>I can’t stand the implication that URMs are so delicate that they can’t make it without a special orientation program for them. Meanwhile, some of those URMs already have succeeded academically despite having challenges that were even harder than the challenge of going to college.</p>
<p>This includes inner city students who made it to college despite attending weak schools and being surrounded by students who viewed academic strivers as people to make fun of. It also includes URM students who were some of the only URM students in their academic tracks or schools.</p>
<p>"Additionally, for black and hispanic students in particular, if they grew up in an area where they may have been the only african american or hispanic high-achieving students in their classes, it would be incredibly helpful to have the opportunity to connect with other high achieving black and hispanic students. "</p>
<p>They would have plenty of opportunity to do so in college by participating in activities organized by, for instance, the black and Hispanic organizations. They don’t need a special orientation experience to connect with other people of their race in college.</p>
<p>I disagree wholeheartedly with the majority of posters on this thread. The reason for such diversity events is not to “segregate” the student body. In fact, this notion in and of itself does not make sense. Diversity cannot exist without heterogeneity - Black, Asian, Hispanic and White alike. That is why many schools make it a point to have all racial/cultural groups represented during their diversity events. As such, the reason for these events is to highlight an otherwise intangible factor - diversity. They allow students to see what a school has to offer. These events do not make a statement on a student’s ability to adapt, nor do they “draw lines between races.”</p>
<p>Northstarmom, I think you have a fundamental misunderstanding of what these programs are like. They give students a chance to plug into a cultural community they may have felt awkward about getting information about if they were at the general student orientation and didn’t know that much about what they were getting into. </p>
<p>Surely you acknowledge the benefit, especially to minority students who were the only top achievers in their class, of being exposed to a community and a few friends of minds and backgrounds like their’s?</p>
<p>I know very well how the programs work. I also know that there are other ways in which the URMs can find out the information that you described – if indeed those are their concerns. </p>
<p>If the general orientation program includes upperclassmembers of all races and ways for students to learn about various campus organizations from students who participate in them there would be ways for the URMs to get info related to any concerns based on race.</p>
<p>The URMs who got to college after being academically successful despite being the only URMs in their class have a history of navigating well new situations – including those in which they are in the minority. URMs who came from predominantly URM environments in which they were academic achievers despite others’ trying to drag them down have very strong characters.</p>
<p>These students don’'t need a special orientation to be able to be successful or to find ways to have their concerns/questions answered. They don’t need to have their hands held in some special way. As long as the general orientation includes presenters – including students – of a range of races, socioeconomic backgrounds, as well as information about the variety of ECs including culturally-based activities and clubs – the students can get any info they need related to their concerns about being a URM at the college.</p>
<p>No matter how one cuts it, the “We know you will be successful, but we have to segregate you from the rest of your classmates and give you a special orientation” implies that the students are at risk and need to be coddled in a special way in order to make it through the program.</p>
<p>What I think would be good, however, would be if URMs were offered chances to volunteer with high school and elementary school at risk kids who are URMs. The URMs who make it to college have strengths that could help other URM kids get on track for academic success. By giving back to others in this way, the URMs also would become more aware of their own strengths, and that also would raise their chances of being successful in college.</p>