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Why visit a minority student union?

Some of the groups you’ll find on campus are minority student unions, which plan events to celebrate diversity

By Nickie Reitz

3/5/2010 10:42:42 AM

Many college campuses host minority student unions that provide students with cultural, social and educational events.

A college’s multicultural affairs office sponsors academic programming, including films, personal development workshops, discussions and lectures that promote diversity.

“The main mission of a multicultural office is recruitment and retention of all multicultural students, Hispanics, African Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans,” says Alejandra Kaiser, a community outreach coordinator at the University of Nebraska at Kearney (unk.edu). “It also promotes cultural awareness on campus. Students from all ethnic origins come together to create and promote cultural events.”

Why join?
Why should minority students join diversity clubs and organizations?

“Most of the time, students join these organizations to find support, friends from the same ethnic background and scholarships.” Kaiser says.

What’s available?
Black student unions sponsor social events, community service activities, and work to promote unity among African American students.

According to Eastern Illinois University’s (eiu.edu) Black Student Union Web site, “African Americans are a minority on campus and may sometimes feel uncomfortable and unnoticed in this new environment. The Black Student Union is an organization that strives to ease that uncomfortable feeling so you can be seen and heard.”

Latino student unions serve as a political, educational, political and social gathering for Latino students. They educate non-Latino populations on their customs and traditions, create a voice for the Latino community on campus, and host social events.

A Jewish student union is a religiously affiliated club whose purpose is to deepen the communities understanding of Jewish heritage and people.

“A Jewish Student Union provides cultural Jewish education to students of all religious affiliations in the form of speakers, Jewish cooking and musical events,” says Felicia Lilien, director of the Jewish Student Union at Florida State University (fsu.edu). “Our agency provides students with a way to learn about Judaism and ask the questions they might otherwise be too afraid to ask.”