The three controversial fellowships — PROMPT, Bridge to the Doctorate and the Graduate Dean’s Fellowship — produced less than 2 percent of the university’s graduate student fellowships in the 2005-2006 academic year. The three accounted for only 28 of the approximately 1,700 fellowships awarded. According the Poshard, the fact that 40 percent of the fellowship recipients were non-White illustrates SIU’s commitment to diversity.
“The critical issue is how the university can continue its traditions of inclusiveness, of seeking a diverse and varied student body, faculty and staff within the law,” he says. “The question is not whether we will continue and in fact enhance our tradition, but how.”
Tequia Hicks, the elected student trustee from SIU’s Carbondale campus, says the settlement keeps the programs open and allows the 28 students they serve to remain at the university.
“The [settlement] protects all students currently enrolled in the questioned programs. These students met high academic standards to get into these programs and are valuable assets to the university. The settlement secures their future with the university,” she says.
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