Many minority student leaders have expressed enthusiasm over the University's decision to thoroughly investigate recruitment and retention of minority faculty.
The Minority Equity Committee, a faculty task force charged by University President Judith Rodin and Provost Robert Barchi, intends to review minority representation among the faculty, both within individual departments and in administration positions.
The committee will also examine how quality of life and wages for minority professors compare to those of non-minority faculty members. The committee plans to report its findings by the fall.
Members of student minority groups said that they have always felt that recruitment and retention of minority faculty and students is an important issue.
"There are too few minority professors," said College junior Shaun Gonzales, political chairman for the United Minorities Council.
"Negative side effects [of the lack of minorities on staff] are fewer positive role models for students of color. White professionals can be good role models, and often are, but minority professors demonstrate the equality of opportunity."
"It's important for minority students to have minority professors," added College sophomore Darcy Richie, UMC co-vice chairwoman and a Daily Pennsylvanian photographer.
Members of minority groups continually emphasize the importance of diversity among faculty and students to a university. They stress the increased breadth of education and diversity of opinions that minority professors bring to the table.
"It's necessary to recruit and retain diverse professors of all types," said UMC Chairman Papa Wassa Nduom, warning that failure to do so could result in "extremely intelligent people with skewed perspectives."
Some leaders said many minority students look up to minority professors as mentors and role models.
"It provides role models, a more proper representation of American society," said Eugena Oh, chairwoman of the Asian Pacific student coalition.
Oh, a College junior, also claimed that there is an extra burden placed on the relatively few minority faculty, who are also busy with teaching and performing research in addition to advising students.
Oh and Nduom both insisted that minority students would not be the only ones to benefit from increased diversity among faculty. Nduom said he believes Penn could improve its reputation by increasing recruitment and retention of minority faculty.
"The University of Pennsylvania is a place that produces professors," the College sophomore said. "How good are they at cultivating students of color to become professors?"
One area the committee's report may help clarify is whether minority professors command the same respect that is given to top non-minority faculty.
"I'm worried that minority professors' departments are looked at as secondary... though that could be because of discord among schools," Richie said.
But Oh said she is certain of the disparity within the faculty.
"There's definitely differences in [people's] perception and resources available to them," she said.
Many student leaders said they welcome the committee's investigation, as such an inquiry is difficult for students to carry out on their own.
"It's a very important and proactive step on the part of the administration," Oh said.
Group leaders added that the report will be essential to their own work on the subject. By providing solid facts and statistics, it will be easier for minority groups to assess and improve the minority situation at Penn.
"Many of our suspicions will be confirmed," Oh said. "African Americans, Latinos and Asians are definitely under-represented."
While some are looking for numerical data, others are hoping that the committee examines University policies.
"The importance of the report is investigative research into what's going on, how faculty are recruited, how tenures are held," Nduom said.
Without such information, some leaders are uncomfortable with speculating about the status and representation of minority faculty at Penn and other universities.
"I'm very, very reluctant to make generalizations without something concrete like this report is going to give us," Nduom added.
