New UMC chair plans to increase group's visibility

In her speech for United Minorities Council chairperson last night, College junior Tope Koledoye described herself as a tiger. "My personality is very aggressive, but I don't want people to be intimidated by me," she said, adding that "a tiger is a noble creature and a force to be reckoned with." And as the UMC chairperson-elect for the 1997-98 year, Koledoye -- formerly a Black Student League board member -- said she has several plans to increase the visibility of minorities on campus. Koledoye said she plans to increase the organization's activism over the University's minority permanence plan and the potential for a UMC seat on University Council. "I think minority permanence is a good idea, but it could turn bad if we don't continually push our voices into the fray," Koledoye said. "Bringing these issues to the attention of non-minority students will also probably be to our benefit," she added. Koledoye recently created a student survey to determine opinion about giving the UMC a seat on Council. She called the surveys "a proactive measure to present evidence to University Council." At last night's elections, Koledoye emphasized that her new position is that of a mediator, adding that her role is to "meet on a one-to-one basis with each group within the UMC, to meet the needs of everyone." She said that although her own standpoints may not align with those of all other minority students, "it's still important for the UMC to come to some kind of consensus on issues that affect minorities." The chairperson-elect praised the addition of the Penn Taiwanese Society to the UMC, adding that the group should try to further increase its membership. "We should try to get more groups to join so that the UMC is more representative of the Penn student body," she said. Although Koledoye ran unopposed for chairperson, UMC representatives did not hesitate to ask her questions about specific issues. Current UMC Chairperson Susie Lee, a College senior, asked Koledoye why the University needs a council for minority students. "I guess [minority students] have special needs because America is a land of white people," Koledoye answered. "Penn is not immune to that, so we must come together under the United Minorities Council and be the voice that is there to help," she added. And looking towards the future, Koledoye said she is planning a UMC leadership retreat for the summer, and has begun thinking of ways to better publicize the UMC next fall. "When the fall comes around, I'm going to get out there on the walk and hand out pamphlets and buttons, because a lot of people don't even know what the UMC is," she said. The UMC also elected Engineering sophomore Vinay Bhawnani as next year's vice chairperson. Bhawnani, currently a member of the South Asian Society, shares Koledoye's desire to make the UMC more prominent on campus. "I don't want the UMC to segregate itself from the general public," Bhawnani said. "It must work with the public to meet its needs."

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