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Running Head: SOCIAL LOCATION

Social Location

Diversity in Higher Education

Dr. Brayboy

2/13/10

Sean Kenney
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Throughout history, the United States has struggled with issues of race, class, and social

identity. In fact, some of the nation¶s most perplexing issues have centered on race (e.g.,

slavery, government sanctioned discrimination). Currently, people within our nation are

predominately divided by the group they identify with, or more commonly how they are

identified by others. I feel that in our current society the dominate class or the ³in group´ in most

cases, not all, is the affluent well educated whites who have the easiest path to success, or the

least resistance to success along their journey. Being a middle class white person with a college

degree, is the group I identify with most and where most people would categorize me.

My social location, like most people, has been shaped by my past experiences. Growing

up in an affluent predominately white neighborhood I was fortunate to attend good schools with

all the resources needed to provide students with the best education possible. My family also

played a large role in my social location. Both of my parents are involved in the education

system; my father is a college professor and mother is an elementary school teacher. So,

education was seen in my family as a necessity for success. I feel strongly that educational

attainment is the key for people from less fortunate backgrounds to better their standard of living

and to allow social mobility to take place. But for people who do not identify with the Anglo ³in

group´ of education and affluence, the idea of joining that group is a very difficult transition. It

leaves individuals torn between the social and cultural identities associated with their social

context and the norms and values commonly found in higher education. A perfect example of

this can be seen in the writings of Laura I. Rendon when she discusses her experiences in higher

education. She felt that the rewards of academic success were in stark conflict with her past

(Rendon, 1992). However, although students outside the ³in group´ in higher education may

feel as though they do not belong ³today¶s student body represents a tapestry of differentiation in
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social background, race/ethnicity, gender, disability, lifestyle, and sexual orientation´ (Rendon,

1994). I feel that this is one of the most important aspects of higher education. It is a powerful

learning tool to experience the various world views that come with the differences across people

due to race, ethnicity, geography, social class, income, and gender. For example, if you took a

group of white, men, from privileged backgrounds and told them to discuss issues of race, most

likely, they would have similar beliefs and comments and no one would learn anything new; but

if you placed a black man from the hood, a Native American woman, a Chinese man, a Latino

woman, and an Anglo male in a room and told them to discuss issues of race, then everyone

would contribute different ideas and perspectives and these people would all learn from each

other.

Even though student populations across campuses throughout the nation are changing

demographically, once individuals arrive on campus they tend to identify with and spend most

their time with other people who are similar to them. For example, at Arizona State University

when simply walking on campus you are likely to see Blacks, Latinos, or Asians walking

together, eating together and joining the same organizations. To take it a step further, certain

majors contain a majority of a single group. For example, the business school is predominantly

white, the school of engineering has a large population of whites and Asians, and the

interdisciplinary degrees like BIS or any perceived ³easy´ majors have a large population of

Blacks and Latinos. Obi Duru gave a perfect example of this in class when he was discussing

how the dean in the business school was unsupportive of two different degrees a BS or BA in

order for more kids to be able to get a business degree. The dean wanted to maintain the elitism

tied to the business school. Tajfel and Turner argue that ³the real conflicts of group interests not

only create antagonistic intergroup relations but also heighten identification with, and positive
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attachment to, the in group´ (Tajfel and Turner, 1979). I agree with this statement. If there exist

in groups and out groups, while some members of the out group may want to identify with the in

group, many are unable and this creates tension and conflict between the individuals of the two

groups.

I would like to now focus on my social location, affluent whites, who are mainly

considered the ³in group´ of higher education and why we have been able to attain this status.

While most of us would like to say that we were able to attain high levels of education because

we are intelligent and hard working, in some cases very true, we must realize that we have won

at a game that was rigged for our benefit from the beginning (i.e., opportunities placed at our

doorstep from birth associated with affluence). I do not think we need to feel guilty about our

success, but we do need to recognize the obstacles standing in the way of many minorities along

their journey through the education system. As norms and opportunities change, there is

probably less of an advantage for simply having white skin, but there remains a significant

advantage for being white and affluent (Rothenberg). One example of the benefits of being

white and affluent is the property tax mechanism that funds most schools in the U.S. Typically,

funding for schools is established through property taxes; thus, affluent white neighborhoods are

able to build and maintain schools that have all the necessary resources for books, computers,

good teachers, after school programs, field trips, and sports programs. On the other hand, in

poor neighborhoods, schools do not have the money for any extra resources and most of times do

not have common necessities (e.g., the proper number of textbooks and computers). Billy Coby

gave examples of what the schools look like in inner city St. Louis; they did not even have basic

necessities throughout the entire school year let alone quality books, dedicated teachers,
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technology, or sports programs. Jonathan Kozol was recently at Arizona State University, he

spoke about the unbelievably terrible conditions inside some of nations schools.

The differing starting points for students based on socio economic status plays a huge

role in who is able to continue through the education system and who gets lost along the way.

For a wide-range of reasons, then, all of these differences and variances in K-12 education alter

and affect the talents of students as they enter college campuses all over the country. Many white

people take full advantage of their privileges, without blinking an eye, and do not see variance in

advantages and disadvantages that are right in front of them. For example, Peggy McIntosh said

³I was taught to see racism only in individual acts of meanness, not in invisible systems

conferring dominance on my group.´

Shortly after the fall of Jim Crow in the 1960s, the differences in the levels of pre-college

education were so stark that large numbers of individuals believed something needed to be done

in order to try to level the playing field for all participants. Thus, the federal government took

steps to create the policy of ³affirmative action.´ I relate this to Dr. Brayboy¶s lecture on the

differences between equality and equity or fairness. While many people preach equality,

typically meaning equal opportunity for everyone, what was needed were programs that

implemented actual opportunities that were more equal; meaning if an individual needs more

help due to the personal circumstances where their life began, then they should receive more

help. President Lyndon Johnson said it best when he argued, ³You do not take a man who for

years has been hobbled by chains, liberate him, bring him to the starting line of a race, saying,

'you are free to compete with all the others,' and still justly believe you have been completely

fair.´
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For myself, and others individuals in the ³in group,´ I feel we have an obligation to

change the system of privilege in order to bring more true equal opportunity in higher education.

Many of us may not want to give up the advantages we have been afforded throughout the years,

but in order to be fair and create justice we need to speak against injustice in all its various forms

(e.g., radically different pre-college preparation for students across the U.S.). Those of us who

have privilege need to use it; not only to benefit ourselves, but we need to help change the

systems of built-in inequality. We have to use the resources we have been privileged with to

voice our opinions to the people of power. We have a unique voice simply because we are in the

³in group.´ Only when all privileges due to race and ethnicity are abandoned and equality of

opportunity is given to all, will our college campuses truly be vital resources for all individuals

irrespective of race, ethnicity, class, and associations with in and out groups.
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References

Brayboy, B. (2010, spring semester). Diversity in Higher Education, HED 620. Class Lecture.

Arizona State University.

Coby, William. (2010) Personal Communication.

Duru, O. (2010) Class Discussion.

Johnson, L. (1965) Howard University, Affirmative action Speech.

Kozol, J. (2009) Arizona State University, Speech.

McIntosh, P. White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.

Redon, L. (1992). From the Barrio to the academy: Revelations of a Mexican American

"scholarship girl". `
 

  
, 80,

Redon, L. (1994). Validating culturally diverse students: toward a new model of learning and

student development.      , 19(1),

Rothenberg, P. Privilege: Essential readings on the other side or racism. William Patterson

University of New Jersey.

Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. (1979). An Integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In Austin, W. &

Wardel , S. The social psychology of intergroup relations. (Eds.) University of Bristol,

England.