Diversity In The Classroom: Jamie Kline

Diversity In the Classroom

Promoting diversity is an important goal shared by many American colleges and universities. At the University of Mississippi the question has been raised whether our classrooms are truly diverse or not.

Much discussion about diversity focuses on standard forms of discrimination: race, ethnicity, social stature, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, etc. Students come into university classrooms from different backgrounds, sets of experiences, cultural contexts and worldviews. Does the Ole Miss student population also reflect such diversity as well?

On October 1, 1962, James Meredith became the first black student at Ole Miss. His admittance was the kick-start to diversity at this institution. The statue and monument of Meredith’s achievement on campus serve as a constant reminder of this important milestone in recognizing the importance of diversity.

Everyone has a different definition of the word diversity. When student Kells Johnson was asked to define it he said, “Diversity means more than just black and white. You can be black, white, gay, straight, bisexual, disabled, introvert, extrovert. Diversity can be used in so many different ways you can’t really put a an exact label on it.”

On the Ole Miss website, you can find the University’s mission and goals from the office of the Chancellor. Under the Service section it states that the University “is committed to developing diverse campuses that recognize and promote the value of individual differences”.

While the University states its commitment, it may not be evenly diverse across campus. “Some class rooms are diverse, I really can’t speak for all of them, but the ones that I have been in have had a mixture of all kinds,” Johnson said, “Except for this journalism 102 class I’m in, I was the only black person in my class”.

According to information about Ole Miss’s student body on the College Board website, 76% of students are reported to be Caucasian. Leaving 24% left for minorities. With these statistics, it is clear that creating diverse classrooms is going to be difficult until statistics change.

Sophomore Cheyenne Smith is majoring in social work. “Because social work isn’t that popular of a major here, I have all my classes with a lot of the same people,” She said.

Even though Smith shares her classes with familiar faces, she believes that her classrooms are diverse. “We do have diverse people in the social work field, there are some gay guys and a lot of females, but we don’t really catch a lot of guys in our major,” Smith said.

Statistics may indicate that University of Mississippi’s campus still has racial diversity challenges. However, many teachers and students choose to appreciate the array of cultural differences that do sometimes exist in the classroom. One way this is recognized is by Diversity Week’s weeklong celebration of all diversity groups, whether through race, ethnic origin, disability or sexual orientation, and promoting anti-bullying.

Diversity creates a very rich environment because it provides many different perspectives. This ultimately enriches a person’s knowledge and experience. Promoting such diversity in the classroom not only leads to a collective awareness, but also reflects the authenticity of the real world. It is important for students and teachers to embrace each other’s differences to create a healthy and successful learning atmosphere for all.

Click Here For: Jamie’s Diversity Video Link

Jamie Kline