USA-RACE/CALIFORNIA Campus rights protests continue after resignation of California college dean over bias

Record ID: 129368

  • Title: USA-RACE/CALIFORNIA Campus rights protests continue after resignation of California college dean over bias
  • Date: 14th November 2015
  • Summary: CLAREMONT, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (NOVEMBER 13, 2015) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) PRESIDENT OF CLAREMONT MCKENNA COLLEGE HIRAM CHODOSH SAYING: "So, I know there has been a lot of focus on the email and on the phrasing, but like a lot of things, these are just eruptions from a much more profound set of issues in our broader society, on every university campus in the
  • Embargoed: 29th November 2015 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA52GTOHC58PE791M7YGZ9FS7KO
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: As college students across the United States protested racial bias on campus on Thursday (November 13), the dean of a prestigious Los Angeles-area liberal arts college resigned under pressure, the school said.
    Mary Spellman, the assistant vice president and dean of students at Claremont McKenna College, stepped down following a protest over her email to a Latina student saying the school would try to serve those "who don't fit our CMC mold."
    Spellman's decision comes days after student protests over racial discrimination at the University of Missouri's main campus in Columbia led to the resignation of the school's president and chancellor.
    Demonstrations over diversity and bias have also spread to other institutions, including Yale University and Ithaca College.
    About 30 students of color this year penned an open letter to Claremont McKenna President Hiram Chodosh saying they felt intimidated and isolated at the exclusive liberal arts school, which enrolls about 1,300 undergraduates.
    "There has been a lot of focus on the email and on the phrasing, but like a lot of things, these are just eruptions from a much more profound set of issues in our broader society, on every university campus in the country and our own campus here at Claremont McKenna college," Chodosh said.
    Student Lisette Espinosa said last month in an op-ed article there was "continual neglect" of diversity issues on campus. As a Mexican woman from a low-income family, she had felt unwelcome at times, she added.
    In response to the article, Spellman emailed Espinosa saying, "We are working on better serving our students, especially those who don't fit our CMC mold," according to a copy of the message carried by the school newspaper.
    The email's wording prompted students to gather outside the dean's office on Wednesday (November 11), with one student vowing to go on a hunger strike until the dean resigned.
    Student Wesley Edwards said many students felt they hadn't had the chance to voice their concerns until now.
    "The general feeling on campus is that a lot of people are hurting right now and there are a lot of people who are voicing their concerns who feel like they haven't had the chance to do this before and that is the general feeling on campus," he said.
    The University of Missouri turmoil, which began last week, sparked demonstrations and marches on college campuses across the country over what students describe as an overly lenient approach to racial abuse by school administrators.
    The protests build on the "Black Lives Matter" movement, which was involved in massive and sometimes violent demonstrations in cities including Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore over police killings of black men.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register