MU, UM system oppose MoCRI
University opposition is based on goal of maintaining diversity.
April 18, 2008
UM system President Gary Forsee addresses the Missouri Students Association Senate during its meeting Wednesday at Memorial Union. Forsee spoke about keeping MU’s student body diverse through affirmative action.
MU and the UM system oppose the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative, a ballot initiative that would end most kinds of affirmative action.
UM system President Gary Forsee addressed the affirmative action issue at a Missouri Students Association meeting earlier this week.
He said there is no more important principle or platform as a university than the diversity of its students.
“We want the diversity of our students and the academic opportunities presented to them to be protected,” he said. “That’s why we co-signed against the initiative.”
Forsee said the UM system strives to allow its students to learn and progress on a variety of levels.
“I’ve been very clear about my opinion, and I will be as vocal as I can be about the issue,” he said.
MoCRI Executive Director Tim Asher said university programs that have race preferences should eliminate those preferences.
“If the university has programs, scholarships, workshops or anything of the sort that uses race preferences, those preferences should be eliminated,” he said. “But, the programs should still be utilized.”
Asher said MU should open the programs to allow equal opportunity for everyone to access them.
He said MoCRI fully supports affirmative action and that the organization was surprised to hear the university’s decision to oppose the initiative.
“We were shocked that they would vocally support the idea of discrimination,” he said. “It’s important for folks to realize that’s what they’re doing.”
Asher said there is no room for discrimination in the country, let alone in the university.
“The bottom line is that everyone deserves no less and should receive no more than equal protection under the law,” he said.
UM system spokeswoman Jennifer Hollingshead said the system is seeking to maintain a diverse environment on all UM system campuses.
She said the UM system is part of the Council on Public Higher Education, which openly opposed the ballot initiative as a whole.
Hollingshead said the council released a statement a few weeks ago opposing MoCRI and the UM system co-signed the statement.
She said the UM system believes the initiative would limit diversity in the classroom.
“It’s proven that students learn better in a diverse environment with diverse teachers, faculty and staff,” she said.
Hollingshead said for UM system students to compete at a global level they must interact with a diverse group of people.
“With the demographic makeup of the United States and the shrinking global environment in which we live, it’s mandatory for us to allow students to operate and compete in a global community,” she said.
She said if the state fails to do this, other institutions will have the upper hand and Missouri students would be less equipped than their peers.
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