On Wednesday, February, 10, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion held for Diversity Dialogue. The speaker, Ivan Marsh, spoke about the importance of minority student’s attitudes about fitting in. Marsh lead the group in a constructive discussion that helped the students to learn more about how students can make our campus a better place for everyone, not just minority students.

Randi Morgan, an intern at the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, said that Diversity Dialogue, “is important because inclusivity is the core of creating a true Tarleton Family and a lot of students are unaware of the struggles faced by populations with less representation.”

She began her talk with the notion that no matter what you race is all people can be underrepresented socio-economic backgrounds. Marsh said that Tarleton State University is a PWI, which stands for Predominately White Institution. She states that this information is important because being that TSU is composed of mostly white students, students of other races feel they have “Code Switch,” which is the shifting or changing the language used or the way that you express yourself in conversation.

 “I do not want to fit in here. I want there to be space for me to be me and you to be you!” Students are going to make space for them to dress the way they like, talk the way that they like, and be who they want to be is by having conversations about acceptance, Marsh strongly claimed

Marsh asked the audience, “How do we get our knowledge to the public?” Several students gave ideas, such as: having more events at the amphitheater and taking this information to the residence halls. Another was by taking leadership and going to different organizations and informing them on the importance of getting to know others instead of just looking at the appearance and assuming their background.

During the discussion a valid point was made, “We pay to go here!” In other words, by students paying to go to school here, they should not have to change who they are to fit in here. Marsh spoke to the group about always learning from other people, even if the people are offensive. She encouraged the group that instead of getting offended, they should ask more questions and not be afraid of being offended.

She gave the example of a phrase that could be offensive, “That is so gay.” If a student were to get offended by that language then the offended person should ask, “What does that mean, ‘that is so gay’?” By confronting others, Marsh says, we can learn from the things that they say and educate them on why their language was offensive.

Assistant Dean of Students, Dana Moore reminded the students that there is going to be a time period where they may be uncomfortable having these conversations, by saying “change does not happen with ease.” By going through the uncomfortable conversations both participants will grow as individuals.