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Ill DIVERSITY • Why is diversity important? • How are we doing? • What are we doing to improve? UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA CRUZ CURRENTS Special Report Published by the Office of Public Information for the campus community November 1995 Strengthening our commitment By diversifying UCSC, we honor our pledge to all Californians 1 olleagues: Many of us share a personal and ardent commitment Uto diversity. Our goal— to prepare with excellence the future leaders of our state and our nation—can be met only with dedicated effort to ensure that the people of UCSC mirror the face of California. The importance of achieving this level of diversity cannot be overstated. Our mission is to serve the people of California—people who increasingly reflect cultures, languages, and traditions from every part of the world. Unless we support the academic preparation of all the young people of California, and then develop a campus with an academic and social environment that fosters their success, we will be unable to do the job required of us. Student and faculty groups, the UCSC staff and administration, and the Board of Regents have endorsed the pursuit of diversity as a high value. Members of the UCSC community cultivate myriad programs and services to support that value, and we have achieved significant progress over the past years. Still, much more work remains. We have yet to reach all of our goals to increase the numbers of well-qualified students, faculty, and staff from among currently underrepresented groups. Inspired by our success to date and determined to achieve even richer diversity, we now must renew our commitment and redouble our efforts. This special issue of Currents presents a summary of our achievement to date. It also highlights recent initiatives and indicates direction for future effort. I invite you to read it, and then join me in celebrating diversity even as we endeavor to further enhance it. Developing cfiversity is essential for the stability and strength of California. Nothing less than the future of our children and grandchildren is at stake. C^Z-iz Inside Student diversity—Page 2 Faculty diversity—Page 6 Staff diversity—Page 7 Campus leaders respond to tough questions about diversity Recently, rhere have been several opporruniries for the campus community to discuss issues of diversity, especially in light of the regental decision on affirmative action. Among them were open forums as well as discussions initiated by individual campus units and living groups. Following are responses to a few of the questions directed to Chancellor Pister, Executive Vice Chancellor Tanner, and Vice Chancellor Hernandez at one of the open forums. Q: How can we still be talking about diversity, when the Regents have resolved to end affirmative action in admissions and hiring? Does our commitment to diversity mean we will disobey the Regents' directive? A: Affirmative action is only one of the tools used to foster diversity. Now, we must find new ways to prepare, recruit, admit, and enroll qualified students from all sectors of our society, including those who are currently underrepresented. Similarly, we must develop creative strategies to recruit the best faculty and staff. Although I personally disagreed with the Regents' decision—as did every other chancellor and the university president—I will carry out the Regents' policy and adhere to the new requirements. However, the Board of Regents emphasized its conviction that California's diversity is an asset, and it further stated that "It is in the best interest of the university to take relevant actions to develop and support programs which will have the effect of increasing the eligibility rate of groups which are 'underrepresented' in the university's pool of applicants as compared to their percentages in California's graduating high school classes." That statement provides some suggestion for future direction. —Chancellor Karl Pister Q: Has the pursuit of diversity resulted in diminished academic quality and lowered academic standards? A: On the contrary, the breadth and depth of rigorous academic endeavors have been enhanced by the introduction of diverse perspectives. To cite but a few areas, the studies of sociology, politics, and history have been reinvigorated by the growing presence of women and minorities among our faculty and students. Also, there have been invaluable contributions to all disciplines by people who in the past might well have been denied access as professors or students. —Executive Vice Chancellor Michael Tanner Q: Are we ignoring the needs of non-underrepresented students through too much attention to developing diversity? A: All students benefit from the widened horizons resulting from greater diversity. The opportunity to learn with—and to learn from— individuals of different backgrounds only enhances the ability to succeed in a society in which diversity is the norm. By working to increase the number of students who meet UC admissions criteria, we increase the general level of education. At the same time, we must not forget that the socioeconomic advantages of our society are not shared equally. Students who enjoy the privilege of excellent schools and supporrive families are not harmed by our outreach to the less fortunate. And I believe those same students will be harmed if they do not have the opportunity to interact with those with whom they will share the future. —Chancellor Karl Pister Q: After so much effort to increase diversity, why does UCSC still have less diversity than stated in our goals? A: There are a number of factors involved in the challenge of building a diverse campus. The pool of UC-eligible students among some ethnic groups is alarmingly small— only 5 percent of graduating African-Americans and 4 percent of graduating Hispanic students from among all high schools in California this past year were UC-eligible. It makes sense, then, to increase our support of academic preparation in K-12 and also to pursue vigorous outreach programs to attract those relatively few qualified students. —Vice Chancellor Francisco Hernandez Currents / November 1995
Object Description
Series Title |
University of California, Santa Cruz: Campus Publications |
Title | Currents (November 1995; Special Report) |
Creator |
University of California, Santa Cruz. University Relations Office |
Publisher | University of California, Santa Cruz. Public Information Office |
Date | 1995-11-01 |
Geographic Location.TGN |
Santa Cruz Santa Cruz (county) California United States |
Language | English |
Type | Text |
Master File Name | ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_01.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_02.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_03.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_04.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_05.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_06.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_07.tif; ld781_s5au5a_1995-11-01_08.tif |
Owning Institution & Contact Info | University of California, Santa Cruz. McHenry Library, Special Collections. 1156 High Street. Santa Cruz, CA, 95064. (831) 459-2547. speccoll@library.ucsc.edu |
Owning Institution Homepage | http://library.ucsc.edu/speccoll/ |
Physical Location | McHenry Library, Special Collections |
Item Call Number | LD781.S5aU56a |
Description
Title | Page 1 |
Owning Institution & Contact Info | University of California, Santa Cruz. McHenry Library, Special Collections. 1156 High Street. Santa Cruz, CA, 95064. (831) 459-2547. speccoll@library.ucsc.edu |
Owning Institution Homepage | http://library.ucsc.edu/speccoll/ |
Physical Location | McHenry Library, Special Collections |
Transcript | Ill DIVERSITY • Why is diversity important? • How are we doing? • What are we doing to improve? UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA CRUZ CURRENTS Special Report Published by the Office of Public Information for the campus community November 1995 Strengthening our commitment By diversifying UCSC, we honor our pledge to all Californians 1 olleagues: Many of us share a personal and ardent commitment Uto diversity. Our goal— to prepare with excellence the future leaders of our state and our nation—can be met only with dedicated effort to ensure that the people of UCSC mirror the face of California. The importance of achieving this level of diversity cannot be overstated. Our mission is to serve the people of California—people who increasingly reflect cultures, languages, and traditions from every part of the world. Unless we support the academic preparation of all the young people of California, and then develop a campus with an academic and social environment that fosters their success, we will be unable to do the job required of us. Student and faculty groups, the UCSC staff and administration, and the Board of Regents have endorsed the pursuit of diversity as a high value. Members of the UCSC community cultivate myriad programs and services to support that value, and we have achieved significant progress over the past years. Still, much more work remains. We have yet to reach all of our goals to increase the numbers of well-qualified students, faculty, and staff from among currently underrepresented groups. Inspired by our success to date and determined to achieve even richer diversity, we now must renew our commitment and redouble our efforts. This special issue of Currents presents a summary of our achievement to date. It also highlights recent initiatives and indicates direction for future effort. I invite you to read it, and then join me in celebrating diversity even as we endeavor to further enhance it. Developing cfiversity is essential for the stability and strength of California. Nothing less than the future of our children and grandchildren is at stake. C^Z-iz Inside Student diversity—Page 2 Faculty diversity—Page 6 Staff diversity—Page 7 Campus leaders respond to tough questions about diversity Recently, rhere have been several opporruniries for the campus community to discuss issues of diversity, especially in light of the regental decision on affirmative action. Among them were open forums as well as discussions initiated by individual campus units and living groups. Following are responses to a few of the questions directed to Chancellor Pister, Executive Vice Chancellor Tanner, and Vice Chancellor Hernandez at one of the open forums. Q: How can we still be talking about diversity, when the Regents have resolved to end affirmative action in admissions and hiring? Does our commitment to diversity mean we will disobey the Regents' directive? A: Affirmative action is only one of the tools used to foster diversity. Now, we must find new ways to prepare, recruit, admit, and enroll qualified students from all sectors of our society, including those who are currently underrepresented. Similarly, we must develop creative strategies to recruit the best faculty and staff. Although I personally disagreed with the Regents' decision—as did every other chancellor and the university president—I will carry out the Regents' policy and adhere to the new requirements. However, the Board of Regents emphasized its conviction that California's diversity is an asset, and it further stated that "It is in the best interest of the university to take relevant actions to develop and support programs which will have the effect of increasing the eligibility rate of groups which are 'underrepresented' in the university's pool of applicants as compared to their percentages in California's graduating high school classes." That statement provides some suggestion for future direction. —Chancellor Karl Pister Q: Has the pursuit of diversity resulted in diminished academic quality and lowered academic standards? A: On the contrary, the breadth and depth of rigorous academic endeavors have been enhanced by the introduction of diverse perspectives. To cite but a few areas, the studies of sociology, politics, and history have been reinvigorated by the growing presence of women and minorities among our faculty and students. Also, there have been invaluable contributions to all disciplines by people who in the past might well have been denied access as professors or students. —Executive Vice Chancellor Michael Tanner Q: Are we ignoring the needs of non-underrepresented students through too much attention to developing diversity? A: All students benefit from the widened horizons resulting from greater diversity. The opportunity to learn with—and to learn from— individuals of different backgrounds only enhances the ability to succeed in a society in which diversity is the norm. By working to increase the number of students who meet UC admissions criteria, we increase the general level of education. At the same time, we must not forget that the socioeconomic advantages of our society are not shared equally. Students who enjoy the privilege of excellent schools and supporrive families are not harmed by our outreach to the less fortunate. And I believe those same students will be harmed if they do not have the opportunity to interact with those with whom they will share the future. —Chancellor Karl Pister Q: After so much effort to increase diversity, why does UCSC still have less diversity than stated in our goals? A: There are a number of factors involved in the challenge of building a diverse campus. The pool of UC-eligible students among some ethnic groups is alarmingly small— only 5 percent of graduating African-Americans and 4 percent of graduating Hispanic students from among all high schools in California this past year were UC-eligible. It makes sense, then, to increase our support of academic preparation in K-12 and also to pursue vigorous outreach programs to attract those relatively few qualified students. —Vice Chancellor Francisco Hernandez Currents / November 1995 |
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