Diversity

Diversity seems to keep coming up in my life.  Being an Orientation Leader, we are trained to deal with diversity.  There is a session students are required to go to titled "Learning for Life".  When you see this on the schedule most students think it's a session for tips on how to survive in college (at least that's what I think); until you sit in on that session.  It is actually a session run by the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs.  In this session, everyone is asked to participate and the leader asks random questions about where everyone is from, what college they are transferring from, how many students did they graduate from, etc. and in that room alone there are so many different types of people and there are only 50+ people.  It's fascinating to see all the different responses.

Yesterday, I picked up my yearbook and turned through the first couple of pages.  In the yearbook, is a letter from the university's president addressing the topic of diversity.  Auburn is continuing to grow in diversity and is all the way to 17% which is not a lot compared to some universities but I consider it quite impressive.  In his letter, he states that every student should have the opportunity to travel abroad and study because it will help us grow and learn about different cultures.  Every college on Auburn's campus (100%) offers a study abroad program.  My college has a university in Italy especially for Human Science studies.  Very neat!

But why do we need to be more cultured?  Why is diversity so important? When I was younger, this topic didn't seem to be at the top of the list of things you must know.  Because the world is becoming so globalized, it is imperative students know how to communicate with different people.  I currently work in a very diverse atmosphere.  There are students I work with studying in the United States all the way from South Korea to learn and take back what they learned to their country.  Even though this is the United States of America we must be more willing to accept diversity.  Our country is not just Americans! An American could be almost anyone know a days.

People in the U.S. seem to shut people out if they aren't just like them.  Be open to different people.  I know this seems difficult but we do not live in the 1940's anymore.  We are becoming one world with thousands of different people.  Do not shut somebody out because they are greek and you are not, do not not listen to certain music because it is not your favorite kind of music, do not walk away from somebody because they are a different race.  We are all different in someone's eyes.  One person may seem normal to you while to somebody else they are looked at like a foreign object.  Let's become diverse and accepting of all people.  (I sound like a politician now: utilitarian. Ah!)

Learning to accept all people,

Kayla