Central Connecticut State University activists seek more support for students of color, especially in STEM fields

While many Central Connecticut State University students were headed to classes and preparing for finals, Dina Merone and Zoé Pless took time out of their schedules to lead a rally for change on campus.

Along with members of the Black Student Union, the African Student Organization, and Women Involved Now, Merone and Pless walked around campus to advocate for more resources, better academic advising for African American students and other students of color, especially those studying within STEM fields.

Merone said the concerns are that the current course design for STEM majors forces students of color out of those fields and majors, and that there is neglect from the administration.

Pless, who is also the president of the Black Student Union, said that the organization put out a survey, where they found that more than 80% of students they interviewed are experiencing micro-aggressions in various majors.

However, she said that when it came to the STEM department students, they felt like there was no real case for them to succeed in that course of study.

“So when we were conducting our research, and we’re reaching out to our members, we found a pattern from the same department. But Dina was really the one who brought the STEM department to our attention…our main focus at CCSU was really to bring those resources and the supports that would prevent things like the STEM department becoming as complex and as discriminatory…from happening,” she said. “So if we have things like a resource center for Black students, consistent advisorship, diverse faculty, diverse choices for faculty for classes, and things of that nature, we might be able to get a little bit more help for the students in the STEM department and any department that is really facing any struggles.”

Pless also said that they had recently had a meeting with the Office of Diversity and Equity about their concerns, yet they felt disheartened coming out of the meeting.

“I think we had prepared. And we were kind of hit with a lot of what we couldn’t do, what the administration could not do, what they weren’t able to do,” she said. “And it wasn’t much like, here’s what we can do. Here’s what we’re trying to do. Here’s what we are willing to do, what would you guys want to work with us on, do you guys want to work on anything? It was very much like we can’t do that.”

Some of the changes that Merone, Pless, and other students seek include increasing the number of professors, providing students with a diverse professorship that mirrors the racial demographic of students at Central, more funding to already existing resources, such as the Africana center, the John Lewis Institute, the Women’s Center, and the LGBTQ center, increased faculty training on implicit bias and racial sensitivity, including faculty variation, and pre-identifying potential for faculty bias, making professors tutor certain topics and not just have office hours, among others.

However, CCSU President Zulma Toro said that she was a little bit surprised about the claim that administration is ignoring the students, pointing out that there was a recent student open forum, where she heard the students express their concerns for the first time.

“After that open forum, the vice president for student affairs, along with the vice president for the Office of Equity and Inclusion, sat down with them last week. I listened…to their concerns. And we have been looking at their concerns,” she said.

While acknowledging that the campus is not perfect and will always have things to work on, Toro said that it has made strides toward becoming a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus for all students.

Toro also said CCSU has increased the numbers of Black students attending the school, that she implemented the Equity, Justice, and Inclusion curriculum designation in fall 2021, which requires all incoming students include at least one EJI designated course in their curriculum prior to graduating, with almost 65 courses to choose from, restructured the President’s Commission on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the beginning of 2022 to have five subgroups comprised of faculty, staff, administration and students, with one of them dedicated to supporting needs of CCSU students, and initiated creation of the John Lewis Institute of Social Justice.

“It’s very interesting, because they claim that they don’t have tutoring services for courses in biology and chemistry. And we have tutoring services in those areas. But as a student, you have to set up your appointment and go to them,” she said.

About the request to hire and retain more diverse faculty and staff, Toro said that they are working on a system to make this possible, however it is a process that will not happen overnight.

“We have processes that we have to follow…I cannot go and say I am going to hire you because you are a Black professor. There are processes in place and the initiative is moving forward and ongoing,” she said.

She also said that curriculum changes are not up to her, but to experts in their particular fields.

Toro said she is open to meeting with the students to discuss their concerns, however she notes that there are some things that can and cannot be done.

“Are they aware of all the things that we’re doing? I don’t know,” she said. “Are they aware that if we have to justify certain things, maybe we cannot justify them?”

Ultimately, Pless said, she and other students simply want to be heard and do not intend to cause drama.

“We are not trying to cause problems. We have identified our needs and we are bringing awareness,” Pless said. “The issues we have identified do not just impact Black students, they impact all students.

“The things we want to see at Central will not just benefit us, but they will benefit all students here and those to come. We are more than athletes, advertisements, and diversity statistics. We are whole students who deserve to be valued and protected by our institutions. Our rally cries should not be ignored,” she said.