Ithaca College

Grateful that administration paused on this campaign, and very grateful that there are members of this academic community who understand race theories enough to see the serious problem it raises. Redefining "diverse" to mean any set of particular, individual conditions really dillutes its meaning. Traditionally saying that a campus was diverse meant that a campus had appropriate proportions of students and faculty of different races, particularly minorities. I may be (and actually was) an older returning "adult" student who is also a single mother, and indeed that situation creates economic and temporal challenges, but those challenges pale to those that many, if not most African American students experience. To put the two issues on similar footing via language is a dangerous white-washing of a bitter reality.

I hear you. But if you feel the necessity is indeed to focus on race and ethnicity, then call it what it is -- "Racial and Ethnic Diversity." If you are interested in a campaign to raise awareness of issues of race and ethnicity, be plain about it -- that's not the same thing as "Diversity," which is more general and broad.

(This all reminds me of a workshop I attended, led by Terry Martinez, back when we both worked at Wells, where we learned to define diversity in all kinds of terms).

I have no problem with the concept, but rather the insistence on narrowly defining what is a broad term.

If you mean racial and ethnic diversity, then be plain about it and say so.

If you are going to use a broad term like "diversity" then the meaning is necessarily broad -- and includes all kinds of diversity: age, gender, religion, sexual orientation, political views, differently abled, etc. -- not just limited to racial and ethnic.

I find it ironic that some proponents of "diversity" want to LIMIT the definition and EXCLUDE some forms of diversity.

I thought it was a pretty neat campaign as it was, helping to raise awareness of the wide variety of types of diversity, rather than always defining it narrowly to mean only race or ethnicity.

My personal opinion only.

I agree strongly with Karin's comment - if the definition is narrowed, it is exclusive and not inclusive to the campus community. When the leader of the Diversity Awareness Committee (Fred Chandra) came and gave a presentation to Staff Council, he invited everyone to engage in the exercise. Fred did a wonderful job to offer the opportunity for all to be included in the committee's effort of the mini-poster campaign.

The invitation was genuine and inclusive. I asked my friends and colleagues to participate as a fun and intersting way to interact within the campus community. I find it disappointing that the committee felt it needed to put their effort on hold.

Mark Coldren
Human Resources

Working at Ithaca, I always try to think back to the time of being a young adult and how isolating that can sometimes feel with all of the changes and pressure of try to figure so much out so fast.
When I completed one of the mini posters I was under the impression that the campaign was intended to bring about a feeling of solidarity by showing how we are all different, individual and proud. I can’t figure out if it seems like progress or regression to have controversy over of the phrase “I am diverse”.
diverse –adjective
1. of a different kind, form, character, etc.; unlike: a wide range of diverse opinions.
2. of various kinds or forms; multiform.

British Physicist, Tim Berners-Lee, said, "We need diversity of THOUGHT in the world to face the new challenges." Yeah, he was talking about physics, but this quote certainly applies here.
My FIRST words when reading this intercom article were, "THAT SUCKS!" Now, whereas political correctness has it's place, this hit such a chord as to override my need to be. Karin & Mark are absolutely correct in their statements - DIVERSITY isn't just about race. Race is ONE aspect of what makes a person diverse.
I am African American, Native American, Caucasian ... and I can throw a few more in; it is the blood, the heritage, that courses through my veins, but these races are not ALL that I am. Is the purpose of this Diversity Initiative to exclude or to include? When filling out my little poster, I thought, "How COOL - folks will be able to see how our differences CONNECT us." It sparked a little fire in me ... Imagine if the entire campus filled out these posters? Imagine what we can learn (and come to understand) about one another? Just imagine the power ... imagine where this conversation can lead.
Disappointing isn't a strong enough word - I felt like someone who has been mugged, beaten and left on the side of the road. Extreme? Perhaps - but you feel me.

While I understand the concerns that others have expressed, I do not believe
that the campaign had any intention of lessening the importance of race and
ethnicity. Educating others on issues of race is important, and I know that,
being a minority student myself. However, "diversity" includes FAR MORE than
just race and ethnicity. These are not the defining factors of humans - if they
were, we would be taking a step back, not a step forward - which this
campaign is trying to accomplish. Most people do NOT want to be defined by
their race alone; as people from all over now take pride in OTHER
identities/interests.

By highlighting identities other than race, Ithaca College becomes MORE
aware of the diversity that exists among its students, faculty, staff, etc. This
campaign is not taking race and ethnicity out of its definition of diversity, and
it is not undermining the efforts of various programs on this campus
dedicated to educating others on race and culture. Furthermore, by criticizing
the efforts of this poster project, critics are in a sense stating their opposition
to widen the definition of diversity. As a "liberal" campus, the Diversity
Awareness Committee has every right to expand 'diversity' to include religion,
sexual orientation, interests, etc. Limiting the definition of the word is not the
answer. Acceptance of differences only comes after a well-rounded education
, and we need to learn about several dimensions of diversity -not just a few-
and why they are important to others.

I support the name of the campaign, the efforts of the poster project thus
far, and truly hope that this project is able to start up again soon as the
posters I have seen are wonderful in every sense, and do a terrific job of
displaying true diversity.

My concerns go beyond the definitions of "diversity," which in this case undermines the real issue of IC's lack of racial and ethnic diversity. I am much more concerned about the implications of the posters. What are they telling the community (and prospective students) about this school?

These posters give IC the right the say "We are diverse," but the reality is so far from that--this campus remains white and upper middle-class. Perhaps the campaign did not necessarily intend for this sort of interpretation, but most people's association of "diversity" is that of race and ethnicity, and this campaign merely masks the real issue which IC has failed to address.

The word diverse can in fact simply mean different. But in
the context of schools and workplaces, the word “diversity”
has been strategically and successfully mobilized to
encourage people to pay attention to the radical
inequalities of life in America, specifically for people who
are not white and not heterosexual. It addresses structural
injustices in our society that some people simply cannot
avoid.

To diversify our campus, we do not seek out students who are
vegetarians, nor do we seek out people who do not know how
to swim or who are Cajun (all of which would qualify me as
“diverse” in this campaign). People like me may be a
valuable part of Ithaca College, and we may even want to
actively recruit them, but not as part of our goals to
overcome the diversity challenges that we meet at Ithaca
College.

“I am diverse” sounded to me like “I am diverse too, so why
should we pay any particular attention to racial diversity.”
Of course, this was not the intention of the campaign
planners. But as educators, we must be aware of the
potential harmful effect such a statement can have for the
intellectual growth of students who do not understand how
critical it is for campuses to be racially diverse and who
may even come to us resistant to that concern. And it is an
even harder lesson for the students who have had to deal
with discrimination because of their diversity, who,
needless to say, do not have a choice about whether or not
to advertise their diversity. This campaign diluted the
political impact that the word diverse had, such that
wearing glasses seemed on par with the difficulties,
discrimination, and marginalization that ALANA students can
experience on a majority white campus like Ithaca College.
This is not a lesson we can afford to teach our students.

When a word has been utilized in such a way that it has the
power to change social and economic inequalities, like the
word diversity does, it is our responsibility, especially as
people who shape intellectual debate in this country, to try
to maintain that power.

I like the idea of an I AM ITHACA COLLEGE campaign which
allows students and faculty to express their individuality
and make public their unique attributes, but which does not
specifically undermine the use value of the term diversity,
nor does it attempt to equate differences that simply cannot
be equated. But at this point, to translate “I am diverse”
to “I am Ithaca College” would seem to imply that Ithaca
College, by the transitive property, is diverse – which, as
far as racial diversity is concerned, it obviously is not.

I am glad to see this campaign has been put on hold. The use of the word "diversity" for this campaign was inappropriate because much of what this campaign highlighted was what I would call uniqueness, not diversity. It is especially misleading in the context that when educational institutions discuss "diversity", they are usually alluding to racial and ethnic diversity, not whether or not students are left or right handed. This campaign was a mockery of what educational institutions mean when they say diverse.

The term "diverse" does NOT mean just racial and ethnic. To use it that way is to redefine it narrowly and non-inclusively. I hear you when you say you want to address the issue of racial and ethnic persons who remain a minority on this campus, but you have to find some other word to describe the issue -- diverse means all kinds of diversity, not just racial and ethnic. Just say what you mean instead of leaning on euphemisms -- if you mean that racial and ethnic diversity need addressing, just call it that.

I see a lot of eloquent and impassioned discussion here, which is surely a positive outcome. It's especially nice to see people who self-identify as both racially/ethnically diverse, as well as otherwise diverse, speak their minds and tell how they feel about the issue. It does my heart good to hear these affirmations of the value of all kinds of diversity. I'm sorry that people feel that celebrating the diversity of many somehow takes away from their own special corner of diversity.

What I see here are two separate but related issues, and a confused use of a single word which led to trouble.

Issue One: Racial and Ethnic diversity of the population at Ithaca College. The perceived lack of sufficient racial and ethnic diversity is seen as a problem and a negative which needs a boost in the right direction. Call it what it is and set up plans and campaigns to address it very specifically.

Issue Two: Diversity. Several previous posters expressed this far better than I can, but I see this as an area all kinds of people want to celebrate -- one poster commented that it was a wonderful opportunity to show us how our differences help unite us, for example. This is a postive people want to highlight and celebrate -- don't knock them for that desire. It's a separate issue from the specific shortfall of racial and ethnic diversity.

I personally do not see why it is necessary to set the two issues up as mutually exclusive. Both points are valid and just require different approaches -- starting with using a different and more accurate term for the former.

Personally, I did not see a problem with the “I am Diverse” campaign in the first place. I think that diversity can be defined as anything that differentiates you from others. The problem with the campaign, I think, lies within the undermining of the word “diverse.” Many people believe it to be something more serious than some of these posters made it seem. For example, “Elephant Lover” or “Bad Driver” isn’t something that most believe to be “diverse.”
In your previous articles encouraging this campaign, there was an overall positive message about the campaign and it is understood that the underlying motive of it was not to undermine anyone in any sense. The message of the campaign was, “We hope that this campaign allows everyone to understand that they are part of the greater diversity conversation on campus, and that each member of the Ithaca College family has unique identities and experiences to share” (from the Final Reminder about the campaign on Intercom). This is not so hard to ask. This campaign has the potential to bring students together but without bringing up such a difficult subject of diversity.
We know that Ithaca College is not the most diverse campus in the world, and that may be why so many are uncomfortable with this campaign. I think you’re on the right path in calling it the “I am Ithaca” campaign instead. This way, race and ethnicity do not have to be brought into the picture. Not that we should avoid it, but in this case, the general theme is to display “campus personalities,” (from the article “College starts new program for diversity” in The Ithacan) something that is unique to only IC.

Although diversity is a very important issue on any college campus, I think the
mini-posters missed the boat on this one. They do not reflect the actual
meaning of diversity and there is definitely a lack of knowledge or mistake on its
definition. A lot of the qualities mentioned on the posters are more unique
traits, not characteristics that make you diverse. I can see how this has offended
people on campus and I am glad that the campaign has been paused for re-
evaluation.