Involvement with student unions and other diversity-promoting groups on campus have made a tremendous difference in Maria Olga Cortez’s life. For the past four years, her involvement with
MEChA , the ASUO and ASUO
Multicultural Center – a few of the of support systems in place to help students from traditionally underrepresented groups succeed in achieving their educational goals – has caused her University experience to bloom in ways she had not originally
thought possible.
“It has been a huge part of my education,” Cortez said.
Her involvement has been vital to gaining leadership skills, experience, and knowledge beyond that available in the classroom, she said.
Cortez said the EMU is a good place to start to look for places to meet people on campus while offering numerous opportunities for volunteer work promoting and planning cultural events. The EMU is full of great places to develop a social network and find groups that identify with both new and familiar cultures; the Multicultural Center with its open lounge and frequent events is like a “second home to some people, ” she said.
Several workshops will occur during the Week of Welcome, highlighting services available to new students. Also this fall the annual Weaving New Beginnings event will be held to connect faculty and students of color. This event provides a mingling time with music, food and prizes where new students can meet and get to know one another.
Charles Martinez, Vice Provost for Institutional Equity and Diversity , said the University is “deep with support structures.”
Their existence aims to promote the dialogue necessary to obtain the collective voice of multiple perspectives and points of views, which are critical to the educational process, he said. Inclusiveness adds a necessary ingredient to academic quality, and diversity is not the end goal in itself, but is a way to establish an environment of higher learning that encourages well-reasoned people to think with broader perspectives, Martinez added.
Each college, school and unit has staff to support the unique needs of diverse students in achieving their dreams, he said, and in them many offices are devoted to providing services to those that may need assistance to find tools to adjust to each school’s unique cultural climate.
The EMU Web site lists resources other than those provided by different departments such as student organizations, student unions, services and programs that provide for the needs of students who identify with particular social, political, religious, or other ethnic and cultural groups.
The Office of Multicultural Academic Support is another resource available to all students, made special because it empowers students to identify and overcome obstacles to their learning and living environments, Advising Coordinator Lyllye Parker said. The office aims to provide a warm and inviting environment where students can socialize, study and build relationships with one another and the staff, Parker said.
“Our consensus is that we believe every student can graduate if barriers are removed with the right support services, and if some need more support than others that is OK,” she said.
Parker, one of several advisors who work to connect students to services, said “acceptance, respect and understanding that each individual is unique” are the key ingredients to fostering an inclusive and diverse student body.
But social support doesn’t necessarily pay the bills.
Based on a student’s particular background, the University offers Diversity-Building Scholarships dedicated to enriching the educational climate of the University by bringing in people from diverse perspectives, and cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
Priority is given to low-income, first-generation college graduates, non-traditional students and those with commitments to social activism and leadership, with strong academic backgrounds, as well as those of ethnic minority communities. This scholarship is offered through the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships .