(The Standard) - Late Tuesday night in the Multicultural Resource Center Annex under Freudenberger House, students and staff gathered to discuss getting through life as a black person. Dola Flake, diversity transition and support coordinator of the MRC, says being different is being valuable.
Flake said some incoming minority students feel like they have to be thankful to universities for letting them in. She thinks it’s the other way around.
“What we know is the more diverse we are the more innovative their ideas are, they produce better results and better revenue, and ultimately we have to be able to retain people of color if we want to compete with other universities,” Flake said.
The “Black Experience Discussion” was fostered as part of the MRC’s Black History Month slate of events. While the event itself was set up by the MRC, Anthony Franklin, a mental health clinician at the counseling center, worked as the moderator. Franklin said he wanted to get people thinking about what issues come up with being students of color, and narrow it down to what can be done to solve these issues.
“Kind of get the jump-start of, ‘What can I do on my end that I can help within a situation?’” Franklin said.
He said while the discussion remained fairly cozy. With about 10 in attendance, it allowed for the discussion to be more intimate.
“If there’s too many people, it might not have that same effect as it has with a more cohesive group,” Franklin said. “As long as it’s a good group of people that is very impactful.”
Franklin said hosting events for Black History Month, as well as the other month-long event schedules the MRC holds, helps to provide a more positive experience for all students as well as shed light on mental health.
One issue Flake encountered organizing events held by the MRC is putting too much pressure on students of color to participate and be proactive with diversity initiatives, more so than other students.
The only way she sees this issue changing is by challenging the culture to become one where it is everyone’s responsibility to participate, step up and take a role in promoting diversity.
“The dominant culture, as well as minority students, faculty and staff have to be working together, equally taking on a responsibility to move those initiatives forward,” Flake said.
Flake began working her position at the MRC in late September 2019. This month she’s been attending every BHM event she can.
Flake said she thinks the events have been great, but the attendance leaves room for improvement. A point brought up in the discussion Flake echoed: a lot of times those attending diversity events are required to be there either for a class assignment or scholarship. She said this is something that building interest and changing the culture can solve, so students will be more excited about promoting diversity on campus.
“Diversity and inclusion efforts are addressing issues that are deeply rooted,” Flake said. “We can not address it on a superficial level and expect substantial change.”
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