Behind the Beauty: Wittenberg University’s Hidden Problem

Behind the Beauty: Wittenberg University’s Hidden Problem

By: Hannah Hoffman


As you enter the campus of Wittenberg University you smell the fresh air as the colorful flowers aligning the perimeter of Thomas Library catch your eye. You see a smiling student body and hear wild cheers from Bill Edwards Field. But behind all the beauty and buoyancy lies a problem that is rarely discussed and continues to linger throughout campus- it’s segregated.
For all the lip service tour guides and admissions brochures give to a happy diverse student body, whites and blacks rarely mix socially.

Most students who attend Wittenberg enjoy their experience. But most students who attend Wittenberg come from small towns outside of Ohio cities. They are often unexposed to different races, religions, and politics. “Until you deal with it, it's a crisis,” says Dr. Forest Wortham, director of Multicultural Programming at Wittenberg. “What I try to do is present programs to reach out to professors and students.”

According to the Princeton Review, an online source used to look at potential colleges, Wittenberg is not in the top 20 “Little Race/Class Interaction” list. However, the statistics for Wittenberg state that the student body is composed of 71 percent Caucasian and about 8 percent minority, which includes African Americans, international students, Asians, Hispanics, and Native Americans. These statistics are far more extreme than the top two schools that the Princeton Review cites as “Little Race/Class Interaction” schools. The number one school on the list, Fairfield University, has 11 percent fewer white students than Wittenberg has.

The Princeton Review also cites Wittenberg administrators saying that they, themselves, "provide an education dedicated to intellectual inquiry and wholeness of person within a diverse residential community." Maybe this is wishful thinking, or perhaps something they hope to achieve in the future. Princeton Review also says that "quite a few people mention they wouldn't mind seeing the student body diversified through out-of-state and international recruiting." but that "the school 'has embraced diversity so the minority students fit right in.'"

Granted, when evaluating diversity in any setting, one does not just look solely at percentages. Another important factor to take into consideration is the interaction between the different races. But if anyone has visited the Central Dining Room, or even the library, it is clear that the minority groups stick together. International students socialize with international students, black students socialize with black students, and white students socialize with white students.

Wortham is concerned, but “is always an optimist.” “I have to be an optimist,” he explains. “But our situation is not unlike other institutions.” Wortham cites, from studies done by the Association of American Colleges and Universities on diversity, that it is normal and healthy for minority students to group together socially. Once you spend the day around people unlike you, then see those that are like you, it is natural to want to spend time with them, Wortham says.

Wittenberg, Wortham, and the Multicultural Program sponsor events to try and get the student body involved in not only the act of social integration, but pure knowledge on the situation. Concerned Black Students is, despite their name, open to all races and addresses the issues of diversity on campus in addition to GLTBQ (Wittenberg’s gay-rights organization) the Women’s Center, as well as the Multicultural Program exist to provide support and further the diversity effort.

Wortham heads all of these programs, and says that, “the office needs more support. This job cannot be done with one person,” as it is currently running.

“I try: one person. In most institutions of this size, there should at least be a director and assistant director for Multicultural Programs,” Wortham explains.
While the lack of administrative support is clearly a factor, Wortham says that Greek life and campus leadership is also a major contributor. He says that the Orientation Assistant (OA) position “had become Greek” and the school had to make a conscious effort over the past few years to diversify that student body. Wortham also says that there were “no Residential Assistants (RA) of color.”

Greek life at Wittenberg is filled with majority white students. Wortham says this is one of the driving issues on campus. Freshman African-American student, Adan Hassan, a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity and the 2013 class president, says that “the true problem is that enough minorities don't pledge, although there isn't much of a minority population as is.”

Although Wortham agrees that there is not enough of a minority population, he disagrees that the blame should be put on the minority. Wortham says that “it is no longer about the student of color” and questions the role of the white student in the broader issue.

“Statistically, white kids don’t go out of their comfort zones,” Wortham explains. He feels that both races need to participate in the act of integration and the pressure to become socially involved with different races needs to be assessed, especially, by white students.

Not only is the issue visual on campus, but it is extremely verbal. Less-so in the classroom than social settings, racial slurs and offensive comments are made freely with little to no objection. This is also quite common on sports teams in “locker room talk.”

While Hassan has come across many racial jokes during his time on campus and says that Wittenberg’s number of minority students is “by far not an acceptable number”, African-American football player Josh Boggan says that he “doesn’t see it as a crucial issue.”

To the students that are used to this homogenous population, there is no problem- they know nothing different. However, to staff and students that come from primarily cities or areas where there is a plethora of cultures, it can make or break their decision to stay. Senior, white football player Jeff Wilbur went through several moments as a freshman and sophomore where he was uncomfortable with his surroundings, comments made, and lack of diversity. Coming from Detroit, a very diverse city, it was difficult for Wilbur to adapt to the sudden changes.

This is not to say that everyone at Wittenberg is oblivious to the problem or racist. But it is a very important issue that is far too overlooked. “I think it is more on the students than the administration. If this problem is big enough for the students to address, than I’m inclined to believe that the administration and Senate would both help,” Hassan says to wrap things up.