Although students have varying opinions on the importance of minority faculty in the classroom, most students supported the idea of hiring more of them if they were qualified.

“I don’t see (the lack of minority teachers) as a problem,” said Judia Barton, a freshman political science major who is a minority student. “It doesn’t matter if they are white, black, Asian or Hispanic.”

Currently, 11 percent of Eastern’s tenured or tenure-track faculty are minorities, Cynthia Nichols, director of the Office of Civil Rights and Diversity, said.

Of the 11,163 students reported on Eastern’s Web site to be enrolled during the fall 2002 semester, 1,483, or 13.3 percent were minorities. That gap is something interim President Lou Hencken previously said Eastern will be trying to close.

“I haven’t had a minority teacher since I have been here at Eastern,” said Joe Atamian, a second-semester freshman undecided major. “I think it would be nice to have more diversity in the classes.”

Last Tuesday the Illinois Board of Higher Education discussed a 2001 report that stated a “diverse faculty enhances the education of all students and better prepares students to work and live in an increasingly diverse world.”

For non-minority students, the importance of a minority presence in the classroom is irrelevant, and in some cases, not wanted.

“(The hiring of faculty) shouldn’t be based on skin colors, they should be based if they have the requirements,” Matt Kreitz, a freshman undecided major and non-minority, said. “I think it’s something you have got to deal with.

“When you go to get a job, you don’t get to pick the race. I could have a job where I have five black bosses; you should deal with the hand you’re dealt.”

Another student was apprehensive of additional minority teachers because she had problems understanding what some teachers with accents were saying.

“I think (the number of minority teachers we have) is enough,” said Jillian Polivka, a sophomore elementary education major. “The ones I have come in contact with I can’t understand very well and it’s very hard to learn.”

But Polivka, a non-minority student, later admitted she would be open to minority teachers, if they were qualified and had better English.

“In order for the state of Illinois to help students, they need to make sure we have teachers that can educate properly,” she said. “And speaking the English language is one of them.”

The views of the importance of minority faculty changed when talking to minority students.

“Oh yeah, there’s not enough minority teachers – we have like two black teachers,” said freshman biological sciences major Biana Roberson.

Keanna Mahone, a sophomore financing major, even sees a difference in the teaching styles from her African-American civil rights teacher from her other non-minority teachers.

“There’s a difference,” she said. “He doesn’t give standardized tests because he feels the need for more interaction instead of lecturing. He’s more into action, participation and discussion.”

That’s not to infer that minority teachers are better or worse than non-minority faculty, but in some cases, the learning environment for some minorities can be enhanced, Katie May, a sophomore business management major, said.

“I think it would be a good thing if the number of minority faculty went up so diverse students could feel more comfortable,” she said.

Barton said adding more minority faculty would add to the college experience.

“It would be a great idea and it would add more diversity,” she said. “You come to college to learn about different cultures and people.”

The majority of non-minority students did not feel strongly for bringing minority faculty to the classroom. However, when Christine Steadman, a freshman business management major who has never had a non-white teacher, was asked what it would be like to go to a school where more than 85 percent of the faculty and students were not white, she smiled and responded with, “Yeah…that would be a little weird.”

Ultimately, most the students said the bottom line – whether or not the teacher is qualified – is what minority and non-minority students are looking for.

“A professor who is not a minority may not be any good either – it goes both ways” she said about the inevitable addition of faculty in the coming years. “It doesn’t matter what race you are.”