January 15, 2007

UC-Riverside Is Preferred Campus for Many Minority Students

The University of California at Riverside, even though it has among the lowest admissions standards of any campus in the system, is the preferred undergraduate destination for many black and Latino students, even those who might be admitted on other campuses, which have a tough time attracting minority students, the Los Angeles Times reports. One reason is outreach to minority applicants. Another is race-based programs to help students once they enroll. As a result, Riverside has one of the most diverse student bodies of any research university, despite the state’s decade-old ban on affirmative-action preferences.

Comments

1. I am pleased to see the student demographics for UCR, and based on the efforts cited in the article, I am not surprised. From my work with minority programs, both at a major research university and also a minority serving institution (MSI), there is no question in my mind that providing a welcoming and comfortable environment is the most important of all factors.It sounds as though UCR is making that effort and should be applauded for it. Many “better known” UC campuses should “take note” of the efforts by UCR as a strong research reputation very often does not go “hand in hand” with a comfortable student environment, let alone, a welcoming environment for minority students.

   — Thomas Landefeld    Jan 15, 12:41 PM    #

2. I am heartened by Riverside’s efforts to attract and maintain Black and Latino students. However, I doubt if more prestigious UC campuses will follow. This is because of a little racist phenomenon called the “tipping point.” There are of course many things wealthy and prestigious institution can do make Black, Latino, and poor students more welcome, but they won’t do them because to do so would “tarnish” their image by being too closely associated with stigmatized groups. Although I am not a California resident, I would bet that White middle-class students hardly give Riverside a glance because they have already labeled it a “ghetto” school. To attract these students, Riverside — like so many other colleges and universities with large Black and Latino populations — probably offers them excessively attractive honors programs, thereby creating a very different experience for the two sets of students.

   — raymond gunn    Jan 16, 06:42 AM    #

3. Well, a quick glance at the Wikipedia article on UCR (not the best source, admittedly, but the one nearest at hand, and in most cases reasonably accurate about such information), shows that 21.4 % of the school’s students are white, only 5.9% black. The two biggest groups are Asian-Americans (almost 40%) and Hispanics (just slightly over the white percentage) – which accounts for the observed diversity and certainly doesn’t qualify as a “ghetto” school.

   — waller hastings    Jan 16, 09:46 AM    #

4. Perhaps the success of minorities at UCR should be seen as an I-told-you-so moment for Ward Connerly and the UC regents who voted to end the practice of allowing lower admission standards for minority students at the flagship UC campuses (especially Berkeley and UCLA). As I recall, one of their arguments at the time was that these under-prepared students would probably do better at a campus like Riverside where the academic rigor and pressure would not be so intense. I write this as someone who opposed the elimination of affirmative action in California, but I think we still should be willing to analyze the results from an objective standpoint.

   — J. Ward    Jan 16, 03:18 PM    #

5. As a lifelong southern California citizen and graduating senior at UCR, I am insulted and offended at the LA Times’ article. I am, in fact, a “white, middle-class student” and Riverside was my first choice in schools. I graduated from a nationally acclaimed and award-winning high school, with a high GPA and a full list of extracurricular activities under my belt. I have never questioned my choice of attending UCR and I truly believe that the experience I have had here will impact my life in ways that no “wealthy” or “prestigious” institutions ever could. And I still feel this way, despite the fact that I am white and receive no financial benefits and no special student programs based on my race. To say that the academic pressures are “not as intense” as other UCs is ignorant and wrong. I have worked just as hard as any other UC student to get where I am and no one has the right to claim that I haven’t. If anything, the smaller campus only encourages more personal interaction between faculty and students, resulting in a more positive and beneficial experience for everyone. The reason UCR continues to have a bad reputation is because ignorant people who have never even visited the campus or interacted with these intelligent, dedicated students continue to slander it’s name with vicious, unsubstantiated accusations. As the campus continues to grow and attract more attention, I can only hope and pray that the “reject” stigma fades as people realize what a fantastic school UCR truly is.

   — M. Vint    Jan 26, 04:16 AM    #

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