Ramapo Supports Diversity Through Annual Convocation

By MEHNAZ LADHA

In wake of the recent events in Ferguson, Mo. and the current celebration of African ancestry month, a leading social justice activist and award winning journalist will speak at Ramapo College about issues affecting the black community.

Dr. Marc Lamont Hill, host of HuffPost Live and political contributor for CNN, will be the featured speaker at the 10th annual diversity convocation, sponsored by the Diversity Action Committee (DAC), to be held on Feb. 24 in the Bradley Center, according to school officials.

The distinguished African American Studies professor from Morehouse College will be concentrating his discussion on the Black Lives Matter movement. He is also expected to address the high incarceration rates of African Americans and the lack of opportunity in higher education.

“All students from all walks of life should come and look forward to this convocation event every year as a moment to reflect and reunite as a group to say that we are all on board here to improving the diversity at our college,” said DAC co-chair Susan Suárez.

The committee chooses the keynote speaker for the annual convocation based on suggestions from students and faculty. The organization strives to maintain a rotation of topics and issues to ensure that the same group is not represented each year. In the past, the campus has welcomed speakers from different cultural backgrounds such as Pakistani rock star Salman Ahmed and Indian activist Arun Gandhi. According to the organizers of the event, a large number of students expressed interest in having Hill serve as this year’s convocation speaker.

The goal of these annual convocations is to provide students with an opportunity to view an issue from a different perspective.

“If you are coming to college to relearn what you should have learned in high school or coming to college to expand a little bit on what you already know, you have missed the point,” Suárez said. “The point of college is to spread your wings outside of your comfort zone and really explore areas of your education that were not explored in your past, especially at a liberal arts college where the purpose of your education is to be well rounded.”

Measuring Diversity at Ramapo

The objective of DAC is to “advocate, advise, and support issues of diversity, equality, and inclusiveness” on campus through diversity-related initiatives, according to its mission statement.  The diversity convocation is one event aimed at achieving the mission. The organization has also partnered up with an outside contractor to conduct the Campus Climate survey, which focuses primarily on the level of comfortability of students and faculty at Ramapo.

The challenge DAC faces with administering the survey is that few students have half an hour to dedicate to answering the questions. The results from the 2012 survey indicate that only 42.2 percent of students and 31.5 percent of faculty members participated. While the committee is interested in providing incentives for those who participate, the co-chairs report that they are struggling to protect anonymity.

DAC co-chair Pinar Kayaalp said that the organization plans to try to emphasize students’ moral obligation to complete the survey and provide feedback that can be used to improve diversity on campus before it is administered again later this spring.

“It’s good that we do these surveys so we can learn from our errors. We have to right them and this is what DAC is dedicated to doing – to bring out these grievances and bring them to the attention of the administration,” said Kayaalp.

The Future of Diversity on Campus

Members of DAC recognize that the convocation and Campus Climate survey results alone are not enough to change the culture of Ramapo’s campus.

However, the co-chairs believe that as the convocations grow in size and importance and as there is a greater representation of the student body in the Campus Climate survey, there are higher chances of a lasting impact. The effects include the possibility of personnel being appointed to deal directly with issues of diversity and the development of a center that would focus on multiculturalism on campus, according to Suárez.

“We would like to level the playing field. We want to have more representation on campus. We want to embrace the diversity on campus and make sure that there is an outlet for students, faculty, and staff who feel that their voices are not being heard to have a platform and feel represented by us,” said Kayaalp.