In a society that has become increasingly global in nature, what once seemed an abstract concept has now become a reality. Frequent contact with different kinds of people is now a facet of everyday life. It is a natural occurrence right here at Saint Louis University, whose mission is to bring together individuals from different races, religions and cultures.

People from all walks of life come to SLU, adding to the remarkable mix of culture and color in its student population. These students generally feel accepted at SLU, according to Kavita Rajah, president of the International Student Federation.

However, the level of these students’ acknowledgement varies. While some students fit right in, others have greater difficulty in making friends. That’s where the role of culture-based organizations comes in, as they integrate these students into campus life.

There exists a small number of cultural and ethnic groups that most students may not be aware of; then there are those groups whose voices are much louder–the Black Student Alliance, the Muslim Student Association and the International Student Federation, to name a few. These groups organize big, all-encompassing cultural events such as Black History Month, Diversity Awareness Month, and the Billiken World Fair.

While there has been considerable success in engaging student participation in such diversity awareness events, the student leaders in these organizations believe there is room for improvement.

“I see SLU as a diverse campus,” said Erhi Oghre-Ikanone, president of the African Student Association. “But many times we are too comfortable in our own comfort zones that we have a hard time seeing through the eyes of other people. We should make an effort to step out of that comfort zone.”

David Young, president of the Black Student Alliance, said that people don’t pay as much attention to cultural events as they do to regular ones. “I think the minorities here do a great job in putting these events on campus; it’s just that people don’t always come out.”

David Clark, assistant director of Student Life, said that this has been a source of frustration for students who organize such events.

“Most of the people who support cultural events are those who are of cross-cultural descent themselves,” he said. “They work really hard to evoke conversation and understanding about their particular cultures, and for them it seems like the bigger part of the University doesn’t necessarily feel the same way.”

Clark suggests event co-sponsorship to invoke greater student participation. “Co-sponsorship is the name of the game,” he said. “Once that starts to become a pattern, then we’ll see more collaboration with other groups.”

Nevertheless, the quest for student unity through diversity continues with much excitement and fervor. The goal of these student groups is to reach out to students who are not of the same race or ethnicity, to foster cross-cultural understanding. Diversity does matter.