Leadership
The Problem and Idea
I have gained so much from my college experience, and I would love nothing more than to give back to higher education for all it's done for me. I feel very fortunate to have spent my collegiate years at a school that is so invested in exposing its students to diversity. At USC, it’s easy to find diverse groups of students if you choose to get involved in certain organizations or activities. Walking down Greene Street around lunchtime on any given weekday, you are likely to find multicultural student organizations and a variety of organizations meant to promote diversity. But what I have noticed as an undergraduate student is that there is a distinct difference between diversity and acceptance, and acceptance is the bigger issue. It’s no secret that acceptance is historically a large problem in the south, and I believe that my firsthand experience of how life-changing diversity can be could help change this, particularly on college campuses. While there are plenty of diverse groups, they don't always interact, which leads to great exposure, but not a lot of understanding or acceptance. My beyond the classroom experience has given me a huge understanding and appreciation of diversity, while my within the classroom public relations background has made me uniquely situated to act on it. As seen previously in my Key Insights and About Me section, studying abroad made me more globally-minded and accepting of diversity. My within the classroom experiences, as seen in my artifacts, have given me a media-oriented skill set that could be used in higher education for the planning and promotion of events. I would love to set up a program at a university to promote not only diversity, but acceptance, on a college campus to increase collaboration and community.
The Plan
I believe that the promotion of diversity begins before admission. In order to attract a more diverse and more accepting student body, diversity should be a cornerstone of the recruitment process. This doesn't necessarily mean affirmative action, or recruiting students based on race or ethnicity. It can also mean trying to appeal to students with a greater appreciation for cultural diversity. One simple way to do this would be to advertise and promote student organizations at college fairs and on campus tours. Sparking student interest before they even move into their residence halls could be key to promoting diversity and eventually leading to acceptance.
My next step would be to promote the interaction of all students by encouraging organizations to participate in events together. I would implement a monthly Diversity Day, spotlighting one or two student organizations each time. The actual event would be left to the discretion of the organizations--after all, they know their goals and objectives better than anyone, and will be able to best represent themselves to the student body.
I would want the Diversity Day to be structured like a multicultural/multi-organizational festival to be held in an auditorium setting. Ideas for events would be food and drink samples, arts and crafts from different cultures, and brief info sessions about inclusivity and diversity. I would want it to be representative of all kinds of diversity--ethnic, cultural, LGBTQ, and any other group that would like to be represented on campus. It could also serve as a symposium for the sharing of ideas and thoughts on diversity, current events, and other related topics. Making it multi-dimensional would be another way to increase inclusivity. This would also help it to serve an academic purpose.
I would also suggest making a certain number of events, including other types of events, mandatory for freshman, and find ways to incentivize going to such events. Free t-shirts and food always draw a crowd at universities, and would be fairly inexpensive ways to get people to start attending events. I would also recommend targeting freshmen near the time they move in to their residence halls, when they're trying to branch out and meet new people.
The event itself mainly ties into and exemplifies the key insight of the Importance of Building a Community. I believe that increasing inclusivity and acceptance on college campuses will make a stronger, healthier community, which will foster creativity and productivity and enhance the lives of students and faculty.
The Evaluation
I would like to send out a survey to incoming freshmen regarding their thoughts on diversity. I would use a survey including Likert-style questions to gauge students' opinions on diversity, so as to tailor events to meet their needs and interest. Below are sample questions.
• How important do you think diversity is to your college education?
Unimportant 1 2 3 4 5 Very important
• Would you be interested in joining a multicultural or otherwise
diverse organization?
Yes No Maybe
• How interested would you be in attending a Diversity Day (a description would be included)?
Unimportant 1 2 3 4 5 Very important
I would also conduct a post-survey to measure the success of the Diversity Day. Sample questions are below.
• How likely are you to attend another Diversity Day?
Unimportant 1 2 3 4 5 Very important
• Would you recommend this event to a friend?
Unimportant 1 2 3 4 5 Very important
• Do you have any suggestions for future events?
• What did you learn about other cultures or groups?
I would then obviously use the survey results to shape future events to suit the needs and interests of the student body. This would also be an effective way to measure the success of the events.