Diversity enriches the college experience

With President Barack Obama in the White House, we usher in a new era of diversity in government. Beginning the 2009-10 academic year, diversity also reaches AASU with our first female university president, Dr. Linda Bleicken.

Diversity seems to be the word of the day in a time when the lines between race, sexuality and politics are constantly being blurred. The issue of diversifying college campuses has been present for quite some time.

Now it is time to explore why diversity is essential to the college experience and the options available to AASU students who are looking to break out of their comfort zone and embark on a journey that will bring them closer to themselves by gaining new perspectives through interactions with their fellow students.

Race is not the only issue of diversity on college campuses. Diversity in gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity and political views are all gathering steam on campuses nationwide. All of these issues are being addressed in one way or another on the AASU campus through student organizations.

AASU currently has over 80 student organizations listed on the student activities web site, which feature groups interested in academics, entertainment, politics, religious views, cultures, gender issues and sexuality.

But why does diversity matter on a college campus?

Diversity is valuable in college, most importantly, because being exposed to a variety of people who do not share your identical perspective prepares you for the professional, global economy in which we live. Some people find themselves never being exposed to a person or group with a point of view that differs from their own.

College brings with it the experience of interacting with a variety of people on a daily basis, as well as the opportunity to enrich your perspective by seeing things outside of your comfort zone.

Being involved in classroom discussions, activities in on-campus clubs and building friendships with roommates set the stage for you to learn more about yourself through your relationships and interactions with others, as well as prepare you for the professional world where you come into contact with new people from all sorts of diverse backgrounds on a daily basis.

AASU is working on continuing to raise its enrollment numbers with this semester boasting the highest enrollment the university has seen to date—7,500 and counting. These numbers create endless possibilities for friendships with students with whom you share a common interest, ethnicity, creed, world view, gender or sexual orientation, but The Inkwell challenges you to venture out of your comfort zone and seek to make connections with those whom you do not share any of those things. Make the most of the time you have to build these life-long relationships.

Yes, America has its first African-American president and AASU has its first female university president, but we should be careful not to become complacent regarding racial or sexual equality. We as a country still have far to go in these areas, as well as in areas regarding the equality of sexual orientation and many other social issues of the day.

So, get involved in a group, go sit next to someone you might not normally sit next to, talk about things you might otherwise be afraid to talk about.

We will never fully understand one another without a dialogue and an exchanging of ideas. All it takes is one person to change the way you view the world we all share.