The University of Arizona-Tuscon

Many people would argue that this is not a major issue for college campuses. This is not true. Through researching this topic for this paper, I found many examples that show that how a college deals with race is significant. Looking at campus newspapers across the country made this fact was clear. Many articles in The University of Arizona's Daily Wildcat concerned race, especially in the editorial section. Specific situations dealing with race were discussed as well as the university's lack of dealing with cultural awareness and education to bridge gaps between different cultures on the campus. One mixed-race Asian American wrote about a group of students who launched an attack on her Japanese culture and afterwards those students did not understand why she was offended by the attack on her background (Youngblood). Another letter to the editor viewed the opinion that the university needs more racial tolerance. She wrote about repeated events and comments that have been said to her based on her race and her features. This Korean-American girl has had ice and rocks thrown at her and horrendous comments such as, "How can you see where you are going with your slitty eyes and that face that is so flat and ugly that it looks like it has been run over by a truck?" (McDaniel). My question is what can a university do to stop the ignorance at their school?

A good start to the solution is increased multicultural and minority programs. More minorities at universities are also needed along with more minority faculty. Campuses like The University of Arizona have tried to increase emphasis on multicultural studies. Minorities are projected to overpass the white majority by the year 2056. However at the same time, trends show a decline in the number of minority students attending college between the ages of 18 and 26 (Ingalls). People need to be more aware of different cultures. This would lessen the numerous acts of ignorance shown towards people different than oneself.

Colleges should be creating new minority programs. The University of Arizona eliminated their Office of Minority Affairs and now wonders why they are getting negative publicity. The office provided a central reference point for all minority student services, including cultural resources, orientation, and academic assistance programs. The elimination of the office is partially symbolic. It shows that the administration is not committed to minority students. The office itself was eliminated but the same programs are being provided (Khalifa).

However, not everything is bad at the University of Arizona. A program called Med-Start began in the summer of 1991. The program introduces Arizona high school students to health fields. Students eligible for Med-Start are Arizona high school students between their junior and senior years who are either minorities or whose families are at lower income levels. A study has shown that 80 percent of former Med-Start students continued their education after high school. The program includes a six-week stay at UA. Lectures and medical terminology classes are held, along with a minority speaker (Fujimoto).

These are the sources I used from UA's campus newspaper, The Daily Wildcat

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