Ten years after the launch of Plan 2008, the University of Wisconsin still faces many of the same issues regarding campus diversity that it did a decade ago. And despite an admirable effort, UW's intentions often appear just as concerned with increasing minority enrollment as with eliminating many of the barriers that continue to separate white students from their non-white peers.
Indeed, many of the problems confronting diversity efforts at UW-Madison extend far beyond this campus and its administration's sphere of influence, penetrating both the educational and economic systems that maintain a paradigm of inequality in Wisconsin.
The first goal of Plan 2008, as outlined by the university, is to increase the number of minority high school students from in state who apply, are accepted, and enroll at UW-Madison. It is a good goal to set, and, if realized properly, would benefit all parties involved. But currently the benchmark exists in a vacuum, largely apart from the high schools, middle schools and elementary schools that are fundamentally responsible in preparing children for college.
Yes, efforts such as the People Program are a good start, but there are still inadequate measures in place to ensure that UW-Madison will not simply accept students of color to bump up diversity statistics and claim success. And ultimately, granting admission to college based simply on race is as inexcusable as rejection based simply on race. More must be done at the state level to ensure this does not occur.
For example, a realization that the path to college does not begin in high school would greatly serve Wisconsin lawmakers and other politicians concerned with minority education. Where parents work and a hereditary tradition of university education does not exist, we must bridge the gap early on.
Ignoring the educations of poor, largely minority communities is common practice today, and common among those who now point the finger at UW-Madison and demand more students of color be enrolled. That is merely hypocritical and lays too much of the responsibility on the doorstep of a university.
In addition, it must be made clear that education is a measure of class, and as long as conservative, pro-business politicians continue to undercut the working class in favor of corporate interests, the expectation that poor children will excel on a consistent basis is naive.
In order to truly promote diversity at the highest level of Wisconsin education, a common sense of dedication is needed. The opportunity to coexist and interact with students from different cultures and backgrounds would be extremely beneficial to any UW student, whether white or not.
Unfortunately, the bubbles that continue to separate each group from the other have yet to burst, and that is a problem that cannot be fixed solely by admissions procedures in Bascom Hall.
