Virginia Tech has been ranked as one of the best colleges in America. We excel at academics, fitness, quality of life and, of course, food. But is there something we’re lacking? The majority would be quick to say “no, Tech is perfect!” But if you look closer, you may find that Tech is lacking in one area- diversity.
Let’s begin with the cold hard facts. According to the the VT factbook, the 2015-2016 year saw 30,598 students in total on campus. 41 were Native American, 2,528 were Asian, 1,135 were Black, 1,556 were Hispanic, 28 were Pacific Islander, and a whopping 19,780 were white.
It’s no surprise that Tech has more Caucasian students than any others. We’re in a rural area that itself is not very diverse; 87.7% of the town was white in 2012. Therefore, how could we expect its school would be? But then again, it is 2016, shouldn’t those minority numbers be a tad bit higher?
Personally, I have had issues with diversity on campus. I feel it less now that I live off campus, but it was rough my first year. I remember not feeling like I belonged anywhere at first. I remember people not understanding the way I talked or dressed. I remember there being only 3 black students in my Intro to African American Studies class that had 50 students in it (that baffled me). I remember being turned away from frat parties because I didn’t look like I “fit in.”
But then I met the Black organizations (BSA, BOC, ASA, etc.) and I felt more welcome and like I had found a large community (even though we only made up 3% of the school). After a while, however, I realized just how segregated we were. We stayed in our own clique for the most part; Blacks with Blacks, Asians with Asians and Whites with Whites. It was troubling to me, but not surprising. I wondered if I was the only one who felt that Tech could stand to be a little more diverse. So, I asked current and former students what their take on it was.
*Note: this is not to say that Tech is not trying to be more diversified and it is not meant to bash the school by any means. It’s just a subjective question that I wanted others’ opinions on.*
The Question:
“Do you think Virginia Tech has a diversity problem? Why or why not?”
The Answers:
“I think it depends what you define as diversity. If you’re talking about religion, background, upbringing, those kinds of things, then no. If you’re talking strictly about race, then maybe.”
-Anonymous, Alumni
“I do believe Virginia Tech is making efforts to create a more diverse campus. It is still work in progress, but the initiative is progressing. As of right now, it seems as though the administration is striving to bring more diverse backgrounds to campus. And they are succeeding at that. However, what happens when the students get here? There are barriers within the student culture that the students face while on campus, which makes the campus somewhat segregated. There are plenty of times where I do not notice that I am the only black student, and/or black female in the room or group. Likewise, there are also many uncomfortable situations I tend to opt out of because of the lack diversity and being put in an uncomfortable situation. There were a lot of situations where people would make comments about me being black or female when I was an underclassman. So far, I have not had that issue my junior year. But I am not going to come to that conclusion because the year has just begun and it is more than likely bound to happen considering my positions on campus, as well as my expressive nature of what I believe in and my likes/dislikes.”
-Erika Nelson, Junior
“I think we have a slight diversity problem, not major one though. I think this is because I’ve been walking around and the majority race I see is white. Not that I’m saying there aren’t other races here but I’ve noticed a lot more white people then Black/Asian/Indian here.”
Cornelius Johnson Jr., Freshman
“I don’t think Tech necessarily has a diversity problem but I could see how some people might think so. The community in general has some inclusive events and diversity clubs so that there are more welcoming environments for diversity. There are also organizations that promote and teach everyone about diversity within the community. I think Tech has a problem with promoting diversity. For example, since Tech is known to be a PWI (predominately white institution) it seems less appealing to those outside of the community who are considering Blacksburg as a possibility for their future home. If they continue to focus on increasing the various demographics of the student body by finding a better way to promote what diversity they already have, I think that it will become less of an issue.”
Aspen Brown, Alumni
“I don’t think it does. It’s much more diverse than my high school in Franklin County, Va. But I do notice, most people tend to hang out with others who have the same ethnic backgrounds as themselves at Virginia Tech.”
Jared Woody, Senior
“I think that as long as people are labeling people there will always be a diversifying problem. I’d say we have students…No white students, no Asian students, no black students, no fat students, no skinny students, no athletic students, no weird students…we just have students. I think Virginia Tech is obviously the best school, and we should start the trend of erasing labels. I mean we invent the future right? Let’s start a label free future right here in Blacksburg!”
Miranda Setliff, Alumni
“Yes, it does. Compared to the majority of white students, minorities only make up a slim margin. Not only that, but the inclusion and involvement is even less displayed. Minority groups have their own organizations, events, etc. but university wide organizations and events are very white washed.”
Anonymous, Senior
“Yes I do. There are very few black people that go to VT or even think they would like it if they went here. Our heritage and the injustices that go on in our community are not addressed enough, nor acknowledged as they should be. Any black person who goes here has felt like they don’t belong much more than any human being that is getting a college education should have to.”
Kayla Medina, Senior
So, what do you think? Do we have a diversity issue?