<p>I am a minority, and am seriously considering Vanderbilt, as well as Duke and Virginia. I have heard that there is much self-segregation at each of these schools, but Vanderbilt is working the hardest to improve this atmosphere. I enjoy hanging around all types of people, but do you think the people at Vanderbilt will be accepting of people comiug from various ethnic backgrounds? Did anyone go to Mosaic? I was invited but had a scholarship interview at UVa. How was this weekend?</p>
<p>Well, Vandy is very accepting for a variety of cultures. But the multiculturalness here is fledgling, but growing, which is the important part. There was a story in the Hustler about how freshman seem to self-segregrate. It was something along the lines of freshman being in a new environment and thus tending to stick with people similar to them. I can see where this would come from. So, as people get more comfortable with their surroundings, they reach out to explore other culture (the whole expanding horizons part of college).</p>
<p>My daughter (black) is very interested in Vandy, but I was concerned by Vandy's ranking #2 on the Princeton Review's "not race/class interaction." I know that there is a degree of self-segregation on every campus, but not every school makes the list and it doesn't get much worse than #2 (Trinity in CT was #1).</p>
<p>Also, when I e-mailed Vandy admissions about the ranking, a student intern responded that the college doesn't keep abreast of the rankings (Ha!). I haven't crossed Vandy off the list just yet, but that response was really lame.</p>
<p>As a parent, I can certainly see why you would want more information about Vanderbilt's social life for minorities. When we attended a PreVU Day, there was a black student on the panel who addressed this quality of life issue and I felt he was very forthcoming and honest. Another black student was our tour guide, and she seemed very happy with her decision. I would consider asking the Admin office for the names of a couple of current black students who would email/dialogue with you and your prospectives. I felt that things in the undergrad school had taken a major turn for the better re diversity in race and social/political scene (I was there in the early 80s). Also keep in mind that Nashville is home to historically black universities of interest: Fisk, Meharry and TSU. I am white but got a masters on the TSU campus back then and my husband has a Vandy degree. Their students add something to life in Nashville that is seldom communicated...it is always hard to get past the country music image. Nashville is a melting pot that has aspects of Midwestern and Southern cultures but this does tend to mean Friendly. Feel free to PM me. Lived in Nashville twice and really liked it. Best.</p>