Town meeting opens discussion about diversity

Town meeting opens discussion about diversity

The College organized a town meeting following the vandalization of various student org bulletin boards in the mailroom. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss diversity at liberal arts colleges and gave students/faculty the chance to voice their concerns/questions. Additionally, the College's attempts to increase racial diversity among faculty was another issue that was brought up in the meeting.

Volume 97, Number 7

Tim McCahill

The Campus

11/03/1999

Jonathan Rieber '00

"The question of 'comfort' on campus sparked a series of questions. One participant maintained that the college was 'beating tolerance into the ground and not addressing the issue that people are intolerant and closed-minded' by nature. The President [McCardell] maintained that, although many Middlebury students often fault the College for not paying heed to respect and diversity on campus, 'the answer is within [the students'] power to give.'"

"Jonathan Rieber, a Middlebury senior involved with the College's Peace Symposium, said after the meeting that he felt that the gathering was 'either constructive or unconstructive.'"