In response to the sudden 15-percent drop in minority applicants, the University began contacting minorities who requested applications last year, offering them the option of sending the application and essay separately, delaying essay submission. While increasing minority enrollment is necessary, the University should not have to scramble in a last-ditch effort to meet enrollment precedents.
The crisis shows the need for an organized, planned method of attracting minorities to the University. The University should investigate the reasons behind the unexpected applicant drought and attempt to solve it. If the sources are ascertainable, the University could be in a better position to prevent the problem.
University admissions representatives often dedicate most of their recruiting time to high schools in economically wealthy communities. However, communities like these send a large number of students to the University anyway. Instead, the University should focus on qualified students in low-income communities that do not normally receive much recruiting attention. By offering these students the opportunity to learn about the University as an option for higher education, diversity and student quality could both be augmented.
Cultural and ethnic variance does not equal diversity - there must be an intermingling of sects to achieve that goal. Though demographically diverse, the University community often fails to be socially diverse - a problem that makes it difficult to attract minority applicants and to fulfill the goals of diversity.
The University should highlight services welcoming minorities and promoting ethnic interaction. The University boasts many such programs, but it should check their effectiveness, considering the recent downturn in applications. The foundation for a support network is in place, but it must grow to foster an environment conducive to ethnic and racial harmony. The University could improve its unfriendly atmosphere by focusing on social integration and multicultural efforts.
The low numbers of minorities who want to attend the University cause a serious problem for the cultural variety of the University community's future. Without bending admissions rules, the class of 2001 may lose some of its diversity - a sad change considering recent years' growth of minority representation on campus. A comprehensive plan is necessary to eliminate repetition of the University's current plight.