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Campus climate forum discusses minority retention, seeks ways to improve culture

By Lisa Trowbridge, Staff Writer

Editor's Note: The Office of Institutional Research contests the way in which Mr. Porter interpreted the data in this talk. Read their Letter to their Editor here.

Students and faculty met together in Hughes Hall on Tuesday to discuss the current campus climate and minority retention. Sponsored by the Department of Global and Intercultural Studies, this student-led forum aimed to evaluate Miami University's progress toward its 2020 Plan.

In recent years, the proportion of international minority students has increased, but for domestic students, the number of minorities is decreasing by between 25 and 80 percent, according to a study by Miami professor James Porter.

Additionally, retention rates for minorities are low. According to institutional research from fall 2014, while retention from freshman to sophomore year is about 90 percent, this decreases by about 10 percent by junior year and continues to decrease by senior year.

Senior Chanell Upshaw, one of the four students leading the forum, said retention is largely influenced by a student's initial experiences during his or her first semester at Miami. To help with this, she suggested that Miami hold diversity workshops for faculty.

"You have to recognize your own ignorance," said Upshaw. "With these workshops … you'll be able to evaluate yourself and see how your personal beliefs and interests are being displayed in your work."

In residence halls, as well as in the classroom, inclusion is a large factor in the Miami experience.

"Having climate surveys and recognizing whether or not students of color are responding to those surveys is important," Upshaw said. "We can say that 75 percent of Miami students feel included, but how many of those are students of color?

Classroom evaluations will directly evaluate how they're being inclusive and culturally competent, so we can target where the problems are."

In addition to increasing cultural competency, one of the objectives of the 2020 Plan is to create a community in which people understand and welcome other cultures.

Junior Chantel Gates, another student participating in the forum, said increased understanding of diversity is an important first step toward improving our campus climate.

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"Higher education is kind of the cornerstone for social change because, of course, we want to engage our problem, and we need to be educated about it first," Gates said.

One of the challenges discussed during the forum was the issue of finding a balance between being included in the Miami culture without abandoning your own culture and values.

Junior Ifeolu Claytor believes engaging all students at Miami in the discussion is vital to improving the climate on campus.

"That active engagement piece - being able to dig deeper and make sure that you're helping every student feel included - is crucial to the minority experience at Miami," Claytor said.

One proposed idea from the forum was to meet with new students more frequently at the start of their Miami experience to ensure they feel included and comfortable in college. Upshaw felt this could be done successfully with Resident Assistants in residence halls.

However, much is already being done on campus to promote diversity. J. Peter Natale, vice president of information technology, is working to educate his department.

"We have a diversity committee, which is made up of full-time staff," Natale said. "That committee is dedicated to educating our workforce - educating every IT professional here at the university."

While many see this and other initiatives as positive steps, more work will be done to keep making Miami a better home for students.

"We're heavily recruiting all kinds of people from all over the world," Natale said. "We're trying to give them the opportunity to learn about one another."

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