Hello, my son’s been accepted at Amherst and because we live far very away, we cannot make it to visit. We understand that Amherst is strong on diversity and I’m curious whether anyone is able to comment on the experience of students of color and the social dynamic in general. My son, being biracial, tends to thrive in diverse environments and doesn’t like to feel like he needs to make a “choice” about who he should be hanging out with so as to gain social acceptability. Any thoughts/experiences that recent grads or current students/parents can share will be much appreciated.
Congratulations!
D is a first year and she’s white. Her friend group is formed mostly with her dorm floormates and I hear that is typical, unless part of a sports team or acapella group or some other group that puts you with the same kids a lot. In that friend group of 10-15 kids are black, Asian, Mexican and Colombian, international kids of various sorts (Chinese kid who grew up in London, for instance). They range from fairly wealthy to quite poor and everything in between.
Amherst had a sit-in in the fall that began as a rally to support the students at Mizzou but became a multi-day thing in the library where lots of kids spoke and many more listened. My D spent a lot of time there and said it was a very positive experience.
You might read some of the student publications available online for some more views, and i’m sure other parents will be along here as well.
My D identifies as Hispanic and her best friends are all different ethnic backgrounds from around the States plus friends from Africa, China, Korea, Egypt, Argentina and the Caribbean islands.
Islands.
Hi! I’m an Amherst student, so here’s how Amherst is on diversity in my opinion.
Over 40% of Amherst students are students of color (this is a very high percentage for an elite liberal arts school). The school is committed to economic diversity (one of the best, if not the best, recruitment of low-income students in the nation) and cultural/ethnic diversity. We have a dedicated resource center, located prominently in the student center, called the MRC (Multicultural Resource Center) with full-time staff members who create a safe, comfortable space for students to study, talk, and relax in. They bring in speakers regularly and bring students to conferences, too. Every time I walk by it it’s packed with students.
We have an active student body that’s not shy about demanding better from the administration. This past November, about half of the student body participated in a sit-in in the library demanding, among other things, more faculty of color. It was begun by several black and Native students. There is also a very active African & Caribbean student organization and a popular club dedicated to the African-American worship tradition.
Feel free to PM me with any questions!
My son, a third year at Amherst, also “tends to thrive in diverse environments and doesn’t like to feel like he needs to make a “choice” about who he should be hanging out with so as to gain social acceptability”, has been fortunate to have found this enviroment at Amherst. His friends are diverse across the board from race, interest, economically, culturally, athletes and non, to majors. We reside about 3,000 miles away from Amherst and I’m certain have had similar concerns as you. My son is thriving and has made lifelong friends at Amherst.
Thank you all for these helpful responses, much appreciated.