“My goal is to put students in a position where their ability to make an academic commitment is not at stake because of funding,” she says. “To me it makes sense to commit the appropriate level of funding that will sustain a student until they graduate than to spread the dollars too thin.”
Although a few White students from urban areas have been awarded the scholarship in the past, some students fear including White students in the outreach effort will only create more competition for scholarships minority students have come to rely on.
Devin Phillip, a senior Ujima scholar majoring in African American studies, says the extension of the scholarships to White studentss does not bother him, but the decreased number of recipients does.
“The Ujima scholarship has been the avenue for admitting students of color, and now I am upset that the numbers were dropped by 25,” he says. “They are raising tuition 5.3 percent, why can’t the tuition increase go towards the Ujima scholarship?”
Northeastern officials acknowledge that complying with race-neutral scholarship demands could impact the diversity of the student body, of which 22.2 percent are minorities.
“Anytime there’s reduction in the number of students [with] a diverse background, it impacts the environment and the ability to provide a total diverse education,” sys Perkins. “We need to admit there’s an impact, we need to find other means of fulfilling that need.”
--Margaret Kamara
© Copyright 2005 by DiverseEducation.com
