As we begin the 21st century, our world is rapidly shrinking and
UCLA graduates are finding themselves increasing their interaction
with individuals of diverse backgrounds and perspectives. UCLA
graduates must interact productively with individuals of differing
races, ethnicities, genders, socioeconomic backgrounds, religions,
sexual orientations, ages and other characteristics. In fact,
simply participating as a member of the UCLA community exposes our
students, faculty and staff to a broad spectrum of diverse
interactions.
This was dramatically brought home to me during my last
sabbatical leave, which I spent at the University of Regensberg in
Bavaria (southeast Germany). I was struck by how much the student
body at Regensberg reminded me of the student body of my
undergraduate days at Michigan State University. The University of
Regensberg students seemed much more like the MSU students of the
late1950s than like current UCLA students.
It finally dawned on me that what I was reacting to was the lack
of diversity in the student body at Regensberg compared to that of
UCLA. Individually, the Regensburg students had a sophistication
similar to UCLA students and vastly exceeding the MSU students of
the late 1950s. But collectively they did not have the richness of
perspective afforded by the diversity found in the student body at
UCLA.
Several years ago, in an upper division course which I teach
with Roger Bohman, I was taken aback to discover that only Dr.
Bohman and I had English as our first language. This seminar dealt
with the impact of human activity on the global ecosystem and could
hardly be construed as a course with a significant diversity
component. Yet, having a class with substantial diversity among the
20 students significantly improved our discussions.
The faculty, staff and particularly the students at UCLA are
among the most diverse of any university campus. In a very real
sense, being an active member of the UCLA community is itself an
education in dealing with a diverse group of individuals.
There has been pressure from some quarters to have a diversity
requirement as part of the undergraduate curriculum. UCLA, among
all the UC campuses, is the only campus without such a
requirement.
Notwithstanding the inherent degree of diversity present at UCLA
““ in both the individuals and in the course offerings ““
not having a diversity requirement is awkward.
Such a requirement has been under consideration for several
years by committees in the College of Letters & Science and the
Academic Senate, including the General Education Governance
Committee, the College Faculty Executive Committee and the
Undergraduate Council. A report on their proposal for a diversity
requirement within the College of Letters & Science can be
found at http://www.senate.ucla.edu/committee/
UGC/Documents/DiversePropFinal.pdf.
Within the past several years the General Education requirements
for the UCLA undergraduate degrees have been extensively reviewed,
revised and reformulated. Currently, required GE courses are
grouped in three foundation areas: Scientific Inquiry; Arts and
Humanities; and Society and Cultures. Instituting an additional GE
requirement requires careful balance. Numerous laudable goals
compete, suggesting an ever increasing number of GE requirements,
with virtually each requirement highly meritorious in its own
right.
Some other UC campuses have a diversity requirement of a
somewhat narrowly focused nature. At UCLA, rather than instituting
new courses to meet the diversity requirement, existing GE courses
were carefully examined to assess their appropriateness in
fulfilling the diversity requirement. In essence, only GE courses
in the foundation areas of Arts and Humanities and Society and
Cultures were considered. Among these courses, over 50 percent were
judged to provide appropriate material to meet the diversity
requirement and an additional 25 to 30 percent could meet this
criterion with nominal modification. Clearly, instruction about our
diverse cultures and histories is already occurring at UCLA.
A proposal has been made to require that one of the GE courses
that a student takes must carry diversity credit. This proposal is
currently under consideration. A list of GE courses that meet the
diversity requirement will be maintained. Fulfillment of the
diversity requirement can be accomplished by including one of the
approved courses among the GE courses that a student takes.
Currently, UCLA students receive significant instruction in
dealing with diverse individuals and perspectives. However, we do
not have a formal requirement for a diversity offering. Instituting
a formal GE requirement for a course that focuses in a central and
substantial way on diversity will make clear the importance UCLA
attaches to issues of diversity.
Brunk is the Academic Senate chairman.