As growing numbers of Hispanic and first-generation students set their sights on college, the State University of New York is expected to approve a sweeping effort on Thursday to make campuses from Long Island to the foothills of the Adirondacks feel more welcoming to those and other diverse groups.
System trustees will vote on a policy that would place a chief diversity officer on each campus and provide a new tool that would allow students to voluntarily identify their sexual orientation and gender identity.
Over the past decade, enrollment among underrepresented minorities at SUNY campuses has grown from 14.7 percent to 23.8 percent of the total. While bringing a welcome blend to the university, the shift has strained the system because low-income and minority students have the lowest retention and graduation rates.
Read more at The Chronicle of Higher Education: http://chronicle.com/article/A-University-System-Makes-a/232995