Newly elected United Minorities Council Chairwoman Shakirah Simley does not just want her organization to be educated about minority groups. She thinks every Penn student should be required to learn about American minorities.
Working with College of Arts and Sciences Dean Dennis DeTurck and the Committee for Undergraduate Education, Simley fought to amend the College curriculum to add a U.S. cultural analysis requirement to the General Requirement.
Simley wants to find out what "a cultural analysis requirement with a domestic focus looks like," she said. Simley feels this is key to preparing Penn students for the real world and promoting open-mindedness.
Last month, Simley led a protest outside a School of Arts and Sciences Faculty Senate meeting to show her support for the cultural analysis requirement, which both student and faculty leaders had been debating throughout the past year. They plan to continue discussions throughout the semester.
And while she plans to keep fighting for the requirement this semester, Simley wants to make sure her new position as UMC chairwoman is kept separate from her involvement with the controversial requirement.
Her primary goal is to use community service as a mechanism for political activism.
"Being politically active doesn't necessarily mean staging a protest on [College Green] or standing on a soapbox," said Simley. "You can be politically active through social service: soup kitchens, tutoring, cleaning parks."
To accomplish this goal, Simley wants to work closely with Civic House to provide increased service opportunities for the board and body of the council.
Other minority group leaders strongly support Simley's new position.
Mana Nakagawa, chairwoman of the Asian Pacific Student Coalition, is a former member of the minorities council and continues to collaborate with Simley on many issues.
"I've been involved with working with Shakirah in a lot of different situations," the College junior said. "She's a great leader, well-respected by everyone who works with her, and is a great representative on the University level."
This month, the UMC is collaborating with the Martin Luther King Jr. Symposium and helped with the organization's memorial breakfast yesterday. The group also helped orchestrate a town hall meeting to discuss how Penn can alleviate racial inequality and poverty in West Philadelphia.
