[Peace-discuss] FW: [Discuss] Daily Illini coverage of Townsend/Miller

[David Johnson]

From: Discuss-CommunityCourtwatch [mailto:discuss-communitycourtwatch-bounces at lists.chambana.net] On Behalf Of Brian Dolinar via Discuss-CommunityCourtwatch
Sent: Monday, March 02, 2015 3:41 PM
To: discuss-communitycourtwatch at lists.chambana.net
Subject: [Discuss] Daily Illini coverage of Townsend/Miller

 

By Darrah P. BD


Black activists call for a more diverse university 



http://www.dailyillini.com/news/article_a9216f08-c07b-11e4-b50c-171fc11918bb.html



Terry Townsend and Martel Miller are tired of not being heard.

The black Champaign activists recently went public with a letter addressed to the Board of Trustees, requesting that Chancellor Phyllis Wise’s employment contract not be renewed.

On Friday, the pair expressed their disappointment in how Wise has handled issues related to African-Americans on campus and in the community. Townsend and Miller discussed the issues at a 4 p.m. press conference held in the University YMCA’s Latzer Hall.

In their letter, Miller and alumnus Townsend examined the demographics of the University. According to the Division of Management Information, 4.8 percent of all University students are African-American, whereas 22.38 percent are international students. This year’s freshmen class had 356 African-Americans students, which is less than when Project 500 was enforced at the University in 1968.

Miller said this data shows a need for a more welcoming balance in racial diversity.

The activists feel Wise is not fulfilling her duties as chancellor and should increase efforts to help the local African-American community seek opportunities at the University.

“The University is very innovative to bring the brightest minds together,” said Robin Kaler, University spokeswoman. “To say that we’re not doing that (trying to increase diversity at the University) is inaccurate.”

Townsend and Miller also discussed the Bruce D. Nesbitt African American Cultural Center, its “deplorable conditions,” and the lack of proper safety evaluations for the center.

“Soon we won’t have a need for an African-American studies or African American Cultural Center because we won’t have any African-American students,” Townsend said.

The conference wasn’t just about diversity, or the lack thereof, at the University. The advocates shed light on another issue: the no trespass notices given to members of the community, specifically African-Americans, when they venture into University property. Their letter included the number of no trespass notices given out by race, with African-Americans receiving the most.

“We’re tired!” Miller said. “If we have this University right across the street from our community, but we can’t access it — it’s a problem.”

Townsend told a story about young men who were stopped by University police while playing basketball in the Ikenberry Commons outdoor basketball court. Upon realizing that the men were not University students and didn’t have a sponsor, the men were given no trespass notices, which last for one year. If an individual breaks the notice, they will be arrested.

The Ikenberry Commons is a space on campus that is designated only for students, but Miller and Townsend said they do not understand why a public university is not accessible to taxpayers.

Townsend and Miller also gave specific examples of how the University is inaccessible to the Champaign community. To use the Activities and Recreation Center, non-students and non-faculty members must be accompanied by a sponsor — someone who is affiliated with the University.

Mitch Dickey, student body president and junior in LAS, didn’t agree with everything at the conference, although he said he understood where the activists were coming from.

“We’re starting to rally people on the issue of underrepresented minority students that are on this campus and their admission rate, and we are trying to rally people on the cost of education and how it’s prohibiting most people from the state from even coming here,” Dickey said.

Kaler discussed the scholarship programs, such as the President’s Award Program and Illinois Promise, the University has for underrepresented groups. She said they have found the main reason that underrepresented students say they choose not to attend the University is due to financial reasons.

Event attendees and the activists themselves attested to the financial strain the University has on families and students. However, Miller and Townsend feel the lack of African-American students contributes to a deeper problem.

“If they could bring the African American enrollment numbers up with Project 500, they can do it now,” Miller said.

Miller and Townsend also criticized the low percentage of black faculty, who make up less than 5 percent of all faculty at the University.

When asked about faculty diversity, Kaler discussed the Targets of Opportunity Program and the Intern Program for civil service positions, both of which help foster diversity at the University.

“We work really hard to get the most qualified and talented faculty and students together to work on society’s grandest challenges,” Kaler said.

Despite the varying opinions, topics and voices that occupied the room, many were unified on making the University a better and more representative place.

Townsend and Miller are currently waiting for a response to their letter, and in the mean time challenge students, faculty and community members to speak up about injustices within the University and community.

perryma2 at dailyillini.com



-- 

Brian Dolinar, Ph.D.

briandolinar.com

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.chambana.net/pipermail/peace-discuss/attachments/20150302/b1473347/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
An embedded and charset-unspecified text was scrubbed...
Name: Untitled attachment 00430.txt
URL: <http://lists.chambana.net/pipermail/peace-discuss/attachments/20150302/b1473347/attachment-0001.txt>