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II. Rationale for Diversity
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Committee on Institutional Diversity and Equity Report - 6/01
In this section, we will rehearse four reasons that underpin the committee's firmly held belief that Dartmouth should undertake a broad-ranging effort to strengthen its commitment to diversity and interactive pluralism:
- 1. It is the right thing to do. We live in an increasingly diverse and interdependent national and global society. Rapidly growing disparities in wealth and access to education and health care pose a threat, however, to the social mobility that has distinguished American society from the rigidly class-stratified societies of many other nations. Colleges remain one of the diminishing number of institutions that effectively facilitate social mobility; Dartmouth's potential for promoting mobility could be more fully realized than it is at present. At the same time, economic and other inequalities between developed and developing nations, compounded by rapid scientific and technological advances, present complex ethical and social dilemmas that must be confronted in a fair and innovative manner. We believe that Dartmouth can best serve this country and the world by attracting and educating a diverse group of students, faculty and staff, and by creating a more inclusive, egalitarian campus environment that fosters interaction, respect and learning.
- 2. A growing body of empirical evidence points to the educational benefits of diversity for all students (Light, 2001; American Council on Education, 2000; Gurin, 1999; McTighe Musil, et al., 1999; Smith, 1997). Social psychologist Pat Gurin (1999) found that students who experienced greater racial and ethnic diversity in their in- and out-of-class encounters showed superior intellectual motivation, cognitive development, and growth in academic skills. Noted scholar Richard Light (2001) made similar findings in a study of Harvard undergraduates. Light (2001, p. 146) found that White students held especially positive views about the impact of diversity on their educational experiences, observing that they learned things from their student of color peers that they "would not have learned or even thought of otherwise." These findings reinforce the importance of assembling a diverse student body, and of providing an educational environment that enables students, faculty and others in the community to garner the benefits that come through interaction in the process of learning.
- 3. It is clear that undergraduates arrive at Dartmouth anticipating that they will form friendships and have meaningful encounters and relationships with students whose personal backgrounds differ from their own. Well over 90% of Dartmouth's first year students reported that they expected to become friends with students whose interests and family circumstances differed from their own and virtually all (94%) expected to form close friendships with students whose racial or ethnic backgrounds differed from their own. Interestingly, however, none of the groups we spoke with—which included members of Greek organizations and race- or ethnicity-based affinity organizations—felt satisfied with their level of inter-group friendship or contact. This evidence confirmed what we heard in our conversations with students. Students arrive at Dartmouth quite open to the experiences, benefits and challenges that come with life in a diverse educational community. While the degree to which the campus environment supports such interaction merits further investigation, we concur with those students who have urged that the College do more to support diversity and foster greater cross-cultural interaction and learning.
- 4. It is clearly in the College's self-interest to do much more to promote the twin goals of diversity and community at Dartmouth. As the committee was informed by Karl Furstenberg, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, the most highly qualified students in the nation are searching for colleges and universities that embrace diversity and prepare their graduates for the demands of life in an increasingly diverse society. As the 2000 national census data clearly illustrates, the United States is a diverse, multicultural nation. Diversity will be a characteristic of the communities and organizations within which our graduates will live and work, and learning how to navigate within this complex, diverse world will be necessary for personal success. We believe the College can best prepare its students for the demands of the future by engaging them in exploring the twin challenges of diversity and community as part of the Dartmouth educational experience. Dean Furstenberg's observation is consistent with a growing body of national research (Smith, 1997) which indicates that institutional commitment to diversity has a positive impact on student enrollment decisions. Furthermore, as we are all distressingly aware, our image in the national (and even international) press has often been of a school inhospitable to women, gay people, and people of color. Viewed in this context, the College's commitment to improve the campus climate for diversity can appropriately be viewed as a strategic competitive investment for the institution.
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