The Observer, March 23, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 21
Ibrahim column speaks truth about diversity
Letter to the Editor
To the Editor:
"Amen!" to Andrew Ibrahim's assertion in the March 9 issue of The Observer ("One Foot Out the Door: Diversity not limited to Case experiences") that "having a diverse college experience demands…getting off campus to engage other versions of your own life." The example he provides of an encounter with a student from Cleveland State University pursing a degree in the same undergraduate major implies that the only way to do so is on your own.
In fact, there are a number of programs in Northeast Ohio that promote the kind of community-based, inter-collegiate contacts that Ibrahim seems to envision. One is College 360° (http://www.college360.org), a program of the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education, which sponsors events like next Thursday's "Night Out at Cedar Lee." The event provides an opportunity for college students from around the region to interact with each other while enjoying discounts from merchants easily accessible from the CWRU campus by public transportation.
Another such program is in the planning stages and will be launched next fall with opportunities for undergraduate students from Northeast Ohio to collaborate on inter-collegiate projects addressing the needs of the region's environmental organizations. These projects will be integrated into undergraduate coursework offered by faculty who are affiliated with the Collaborative Learning for Environmental Action Network (CLEAN). Go to http://geology.case.edu/~clean for more information. The network is a consortium sponsored by the Western Reserve Resource Conservation and Development Council. Ibrahim is to be commended for taking individual initiative to truly diversify his college experience both locally and internationally, through study abroad during his junior year. Fortunately, the undergraduate students who return to Northeast Ohio's campuses next fall will have additional, easily-accessible venues to follow his example.
Glenn C. Odenbrett
SAGES lecturer
CLEAN coordinator
