What changes does the College need to make to be more successful? Day: More resources for people like me. Mentorships. Scholarships. There are not enough scholarships, and it takes so much work and knowledge to even find them. I’ve looked, but I either don’t meet the GPA requirement, or I don’t see the representation. I don’t see people like me getting the assistance. It’s like when little kids see someone that looks like them, and they’re like, “Oh, I can do that, too, because you did it.” I didn’t have that growing up. My parents don’t have a college education. I told myself that I was going to be a construction worker because my dad was one. My roommate is going to be a teacher, and she talks about her class experience and how there are immigrant students who don’t speak English. She doesn’t know how to help them. I have told her what I will tell you: “Educate yourself and make people feel like they matter. Let them know they belong in this environment and they are capable of success.” I don’t think a lot of professionals are educated or have knowledge on better ways to deal with students who come from different backgrounds. I’m tired of having to educate each person. As a student, I shouldn’t have to be the role model. I shouldn’t have to be the teacher at the same time.
I also had an experience freshman year with a professor who asked me if I speak English, and if he was talking too fast for me. I was speaking with him in fluent English. I reported it. I did everything right. And nothing happened. The only option for me was to drop the class and take the W, or just keep on going with the class. I dropped the class, and I just retook the next semester with a new professor. What do you feel are our greatest strengths as far as diversity? Day: I think the outreach here is much improved. Now I get more emails providing information about resources and how to access them. I see more and more people here at the university who are trying to work toward progress and make DEI more prevalent here. I feel like a shift is taking place, but I think it’s going to be very slow. These are big problems, and we have to be persistent. What areas of DEI do you feel like the College needs to focus more on in the next few years? Day: You have to build a more diverse student body and make college more accessible. College is extremely expensive, and a lot of these underrepresented minority students come from low-income neighborhoods and families. Not saying all of them do, but I know five of the people in my high school came here, and the rest can’t afford it. And the costs get higher every year.
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