The most diverse experiences I’ve ever had in either my life was when I was an undergrad student at a Historically Black University (an HBCU). For those who are unfamiliar, HBCU’s were first established before the American Civil War in northern states like Pennsylvania and Ohio as institutions of higher learning for Black students who weren’t permitted to attend colleges and universities with White students. The schools later expanded to other states in America, primarily in the south. Some may question their relevance today post “Brown vs Board of Education” era, but others argue that schools in the United States are just as segregated today as they were prior to the landmark ruling in 1954. The diversity I experienced came from both the faculty and student body. I met individuals from various cultures and walks of life. I built lasting relationships with students that came from as far away as Tel Aviv to as near as the bayous of Louisiana. Students whose grandparents were sharecroppers to students who saw their family’s name on-campus buildings.

The faculty was even more diverse than the student body. It was my first time really coming to the realization that I could excel in anything; I saw mathematicians and scientists who resembled the women in my own family. I had just spent four years prior to that dealing with the frequent racial microaggressions at a high school renowned for being racially diverse and inclusive. I came to the realization much later that most of the students of color had developed their own survival techniques to make it through the larger society or student body. Some of the techniques involved an attempt at assimilating with the larger student population, complacency, or just trying to stay as low key as possible. I chose the “stay as low key as possible approach”, it disrupted my spirit.

The need for diverse faculty members at all levels of scholastic endeavor is beneficial for everyone, possibly even more so than a visibly racially diverse student body. It serves as a catalyst in breaking up racial and gender stereotypes and biases.

https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/diversity-look-like-hbcus/https://www.britannica.com/event/Brown-v-Board-of-Education-of-Topeka