Changing Complexions, New Complications - multiculturalism at California State University campuses

Black Issues in Higher Education, Sept 27, 2001 by Cheryl D. Fields

CAL STATE UNIVERSITY'S JAMES LYONS AND JAMES ROSSER FACE UNPRECEDENTED LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES AS THEIR INSTITUTIONS EXPERIENCE DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGES

In many ways, the Los Angeles basin is ground zero for the shifting demographic status of African Americans and Chicano/Latinos. Cities like Inglewood, Compton, Carson, Long Beach and even the Watts section of Los Angeles -- where, only a few decades ago, Blacks were either the majority or held status as the dominant minority group -- are areas where Blacks are now a minority among people of color. Chicanos and Latinos in these communities, meanwhile, are discovering new political and economic vitality in their status as the largest racial segment of the population. Not surprisingly, this rapid shift presents new opportunities and dilemmas for educators.

Two campuses where the new demographic order is in full effect are California State University-Dominguez Hills and California State University-Los Angeles. Situated roughly 18 miles from each other in the heart of the Los Angeles basin, both institutions are commuter schools that attract students from throughout Los Angeles County, and to a lesser extent, other parts of the state. The federal government recognizes both institutions as Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs), and both have African American presidents. Dr. James E. Lyons Sr., president of CSU-Dominguez Hills, and Dr. James M. Rosser, president of CSU-Los Angeles, are among a handful of African American college presidents who are experiencing firsthand the growing Chicano/Latino student population amid the frustrations and challenges that accompany leadership during African American's nascent, but perhaps inevitable, transition from the nation's largest minority group to the second largest.

NAVIGATING DIVERSITY IN EAST LA

The CSU-Los Angeles campus is situated about five miles east of downtown Los Angeles in a region of the county that has had a predominant Chicano presence for several generations. Founded in 1947, today the six-college university boasts 50 academic units and enrolls roughly 19,000 students -- nearly 14,000 are full-time equivalent. Rosser, the university's first African American and longest-sitting president, has been at the helm for 21 years. As one of the 23-campus state university's older institutions, CSULA has been a pioneer among its peers in managing and celebrating its rich and complex diversity.

Dr. Anthony Ross, the university's vice president of student affairs, came to campus a year ago from Wichita State University. Having been recommended for his current job by his former president, Ross was at Northern Arizona University for 13 years before going to Wichita, and he says there are two main reasons he moved to Southern California: "The opportunity to work with Jim Rosser and the opportunity to work at Cal State LA," he says. "I had the feeling that this is where the action is and where I wanted to be."

Certainly, navigating the campus' rich diversity is not always seamless. Over the past 10 years, the Chicano/Latino population has blossomed to 52.6 percent from 32.2 percent and the Black population has declined to 8.9 percent from 11.4 percent. However, Ross says the campus' success is the result of institution-wide commitment that hinges on support from students, faculty and staff, and a leader who is unwavering in his belief that pluralism and equity can co-exist.

"The leadership (Rosser) provides is outstanding," Ross says, noting that Rosser is an outspoken champion for issues of diversity, equity and equality and whose message is consistent no matter what the audience. Rosser was on vacation at the time interviews for this article were being conducted, but Ross says the president doesn't hesitate to let people know that CSULA's diversity is a window into America's future.

"People come to understand that you don't need to run from (pluralism)," Ross says. "We not only acknowledge and embrace it, but provide ways to shape opportunities for our students and education that will benefit the country."

Several of the university's programs exemplify this commitment. The CSULA's charter college of education routinely graduates large numbers of teachers of color, most of whom go on to become public school educators; and the university's gang violence bridge project admits former gang members as students each year.

Interracial relations on the campus are generally harmonious, according to Ross and public affairs official Carol Selkin. Black and Brown relations are no exception. The student body president, Natoya Ross, for example, is African American, but she was elected by a multicultural coalition that included a substantial Chicano/Latino constituency.

Unlike in other parts of the country where African Americans have historically been the largest minority group, Chicano/Latino population dominance in East Los Angeles is nothing new. Not only is it not new for the campus, it is not new for the students, most of whom come to campus from the surrounding region and, therefore, are accustomed to operating in what outsiders might consider a new demographic order. Of course, the campus' status as a commuter school also may be a factor that minimizes interracial rifts. However, Ross and Selkin say they believe the harmony exists because people share a common vision.