The Daily Campus

Issue date: 3/27/08 Section: Commentary

A lack of diversity on a college campus in a credible concern, but there is only so much that one university can do. Interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds is as important to the educational process as attending class. A recent report on higher education in the state of Connecticut showed that minority students were underrepresented at the University of Connecticut. However, UConn has gone to great lengths to increase enrollment and there is not much more that can be done. They should be applauded for their effort but unfortunately not all outcomes are in their control.

The report, which was presented to the Board of Governors for Higher Education, outlined where minority students, specifically black and Hispanic, enroll for continuing education. Minorities are 21.4 percent of Connecticut's population and make up 22.5 percent of the enrollment in the state's higher education system. The interesting fact is not that these students are not qualified, but that instead they choose to enroll at community and technical schools instead of UConn. Many of them have been accepted to UConn but choose to go elsewhere. According to the Hartford Courant, black students "represented 5.7 percent of the student body at the UConn last fall, eight percent at the four Connecticut State University System campuses and 15.6 percent of students at the state's community and technical colleges. Hispanic students, meanwhile, represented 5.5 percent of UConn students, 5.8 percent of Connecticut State University System students and 13.9 percent of community and technical college students."

The reason that students may not attend UConn may have to do with their individual financial situations. Despite the financial aid given to students, which has increased in recent years, students still may save money by living at home, working a part-time job and attending school at the same time. There is not much more that UConn can do to accommodate these students if attending UConn is too much of a financial burden. The only real course of action they could take is offer these students more money than what the FAFSA forms indicate they need.

Despite the problem of underenrollment by minority students, the number of minority students attending UConn has doubled in the last decade. UConn is employing the help of students from the multicultural centers to talk to recently accepted students about their options when attending UConn, but short of making the school more affordable, or offering more attractive financial aid options, there is not much more UConn can be expected to do. UConn has already done more than its share to increase the minority population at the university.

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