CU was ranked in several categories of the “Top 100 Undergraduate Producers” list in the June issue of “Diverse: Issues in Higher Education.”
CU’s overall ranking for awarding degrees to American Indian students was 59th; for Asian-American graduates, 64th; and for Hispanics, 76th. However, CU did not make the top 100 for awarding bachelor’s degrees to black students.
“There are a lot of factors that make it impossible for Colorado to ever be at the top of the list, partly because of state demographics,” said Carmen Williams, assistant vice president for diversity at CU. “We have limits on the number of the out-of-state students, state demographics, all of those factors are part of this picture of where the rankings will be.”
According to a school official, the totals for freshmen minority students may be at their highest levels in about 15 years. Minority freshmen students total close to 850 this year, compared to 737 last year.
The numbers of African-American, Asian-American and Hispanic students are all expected to increase by 10 to 20 percent, and the number of American Indian freshmen are expected to double. This year, minority students are expected to represent about 15 percent of the student body.
“I’m from California, so I’m used to a lot of diversity. So this is like pretty much all white people to me,” said Ryan Ford, a sophomore open option major.
Six years ago, the Blue Ribbon Commission issued a campus diversity plan, “A Blueprint for Action.” This plan serves as the basis for diversity initiatives and programs on campus. The three goals expressed in “A Blueprint for Action” are to build and maintain an inclusive campus environment; to recruit, support, retain, and graduate a diverse student population; and to maintain and enhance diversity in employment of staff, faculty and administrations.
“Efforts in diversity don’t happen overnight, and some of the progress that needs to be made are in the action plans,” Williams said. “I think we’re going to see a lot more in the years to come. The actions of the Blue Ribbon Commission are going to be implemented in the next year.”
CU’s campus “is not super diverse,” said Jenny Chang, a freshman MCD biology major. “CU attracts a certain type of people, and I don’t think that the image it portrays can be changed.”
As for the rankings not including black students, Williams said the school is in the process reaching out to the community. There are many community representatives working with the president’s office to strengthen connections with African-American and other diverse communities.
“We’re changing around a tarnished image,” she said.
According to the spring 2006 CU newsletter titled “Focus on Diversity,” “It’s not the responsibility of the minority to transform the campus — it’s the responsibility of each and every member of the university community.”
