BC graded low on race interaction

One week before Boston College achieved its No. 16 ranking on Forbes magazine's America's Best Colleges rankings, the University's name appeared high on another well-known ranking. BC took the No. 17 spot on the Princeton Review's "Little Class/Race Interaction" list, a ranking that raised eyebrows among students and campus leaders.

The rankings were determined by a survey given to approximately 325 students at each of the 371 school studied. Jeanne Krier, publicist for Princeton Review Books, said in an e-mail that race and class interaction was gauged by the student answer to the question: "Do different types of student (black/white, rich/poor) interact frequently and easily on your campus?" Krier said that the Princeton Review does not report specific data on precisely how many BC students took the survey.

Feiyang Chen, co-director of the AHANA Caucus and A&S '10, said that he has noticed the trend of racial separation on campus both as a student and as a campus leader. "I would have to agree with the survey results," he said. "If they had approached me and asked me, I would have probably said the same things."

When asked what he viewed to be the root of the lack of racial interaction, Chen said that some AHANA students find an easily-accessible community within their own cultural groups freshman year, which can deter interaction. "When I came to BC, it was hard to make friends. But the CSA offered me an opportunity to meet people and learn more about my culture. It was familiar to me," he said.

Chen said that although many cultural clubs affiliated with the Caucus host events, many are attended only by members of the hosting club, stifling inter-racial interaction. "It's definitely something that we're trying to address here at the Caucus," he said. Events such as the ALC Showdown have had large and racially diverse audiences, Chen said. "Some events do attract some more diverse crowds, and that's what we want to see," he said.

Chen also stressed the importance of letting the student community know that almost all cultural groups are open to students of any race or background. "If we communicate that idea to freshmen, they will be more likely to come out to events," he said. While spreading that message is a goal of the Caucus this year, there is still a lot to be done on the publicity front, he said. "The publicity for this is probably not as great as it should be yet," he said.

Earl Edwards, co-president of the AHANA Leadership Council (ALC) and A&S '10, said that he also identifies lack of racial interaction as an issue on campus, one that he has set his sights on addressing this year. "In terms of my experience it's not surprising," he said. "As a student of color, it's very noticeable."

Edwards said that as president of the ALC, he has seen a lack of diverse involvement in on-campus dialogue regarding social and political issues. "It's hard to get a diverse group of students together on campus," he said. Edwards said that there has been a lack of participation in many discussions concerning inner-city development, social justice, and race.

While race on campus is something to be addressed, class issues at BC are prevalent and many times go unnoticed. "It's just something that not a lot of people want to talk about, whether people have a lot of money or not," Edwards said.

Class interaction may be a hushed topic, but is nevertheless one that has a large effect on student life, Edwards said. "How much money you have can determine your rooming situation, if and where you are going to events on campus, and what you are doing with your time. Some people cannot come to our events because they can't afford it," he said. "It's a big issue."

Working to address such issues on campus, the ALC has made dialogue on race at BC a high priority this year as it celebrates the 30th anniversary of the AHANA acronym at BC. "This year, we're celebrating the anniversary, as well as Hispanic Heritage Month in September until October … and we're going to try to bring some of these issues to light," Edwards said. "It's definitely something we're focused on."