Sunday, May 1, 2011

Can a White Man Speak with Authority on Diversity? (DiversityInc)

I, the founder and director of DISCUS, will not hide the fact that I fit the mold of the majority population in the United States, as it is defined in Luke Visconti's article on "Can a White Man Speak with Authority on Diversity?".  While I have certainly perceived my efforts to be valid and important, I have often wondered how this effort would be perceived by everyone else.  Mr. Visconti's words ring true to me, in that there are many levels to diversity.  Diversity is an awareness that, in order to achieve the best of anything, it should be perceived from many different viewpoints.  That is why it is so very important that all of our nation's students, regardless of background or heritage, take up the task of pursuing scientific literacy.  While all will not become scientists and engineers, all will need to interact with and understand science and engineering to some degree in their lives.  Even better, the more students who can be engaged and excited by science and math, the more chances our society will have to excel.  We should all have in our mind the importance of science, but to have the biggest impact, science should also be intertwined with diversity.  Thank you for supporting our efforts with DISCUS.