2008 Woodie Awards
Letters to the Editor
9/24/07
9/24/07 - Opinion
Dear Editor,
I agree with William Everson….
I agree with the opinion of Mr. William Everson… that diversity has a price and that it is an important subject. I agree with the title, the rest of his opinion is addressed below.
Most people who aren't involved in MEP probably don't know the following facts:
1) MEP is open for anyone to join of any ethnicity including Caucasians. Yes, we do have Caucasian males as members.
2) One of the 4 student groups that MEP supports had a Caucasian male as its president and he did a great job
3) MEP has no quotas to follow
4) Our mission is to be inclusive, not exclusive. Students choose to exclude themselves or not.
In the opinion, there was a subtle implication that CSM is lowering the admission standards for minorities. I can confirm that there is only one admission's window for all students. Mines has set a bar of 110 index (cross reference table between GPA/class rank and standardized test scores). More than 97% of the entering freshmen met this criterion. CSM would not admit a student if they thought that the student couldn't succeed here.
If one compares a football team's math skills to another football team's math skills and calls that diversity, then the issue of diversity is truly skin deep for that person. Diversity is much more than just numbers. Diversity encompasses culture, economic class, 1st generation college bound and other factors. To look at numbers only is truly narrowing your mind.
Diversity is a two way street. Human diversity is inter-facing. If you have ever had an international friend, then you would know that you learn more about the other person than they learn about you because the US culture is more pervasive. The predominant group, whether ethnic or national, would stand to gain more in the relationship, if they only choose to do the inter-facing.
I would say to students such as Mr. Everson, whom I have not met, that you would gain more if you expand your group of friends beyond someone similar to yourself. College is about expanding your knowledge. You short change yourself if you do not expand your knowledge beyond your technical education. You are paying for your education, so you should maximize your benefits.
I agree with William Everson….
I agree with the opinion of Mr. William Everson… that diversity has a price and that it is an important subject. I agree with the title, the rest of his opinion is addressed below.
Most people who aren't involved in MEP probably don't know the following facts:
1) MEP is open for anyone to join of any ethnicity including Caucasians. Yes, we do have Caucasian males as members.
2) One of the 4 student groups that MEP supports had a Caucasian male as its president and he did a great job
3) MEP has no quotas to follow
4) Our mission is to be inclusive, not exclusive. Students choose to exclude themselves or not.
In the opinion, there was a subtle implication that CSM is lowering the admission standards for minorities. I can confirm that there is only one admission's window for all students. Mines has set a bar of 110 index (cross reference table between GPA/class rank and standardized test scores). More than 97% of the entering freshmen met this criterion. CSM would not admit a student if they thought that the student couldn't succeed here.
If one compares a football team's math skills to another football team's math skills and calls that diversity, then the issue of diversity is truly skin deep for that person. Diversity is much more than just numbers. Diversity encompasses culture, economic class, 1st generation college bound and other factors. To look at numbers only is truly narrowing your mind.
Diversity is a two way street. Human diversity is inter-facing. If you have ever had an international friend, then you would know that you learn more about the other person than they learn about you because the US culture is more pervasive. The predominant group, whether ethnic or national, would stand to gain more in the relationship, if they only choose to do the inter-facing.
I would say to students such as Mr. Everson, whom I have not met, that you would gain more if you expand your group of friends beyond someone similar to yourself. College is about expanding your knowledge. You short change yourself if you do not expand your knowledge beyond your technical education. You are paying for your education, so you should maximize your benefits.
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