The students at Cabrini College have been criticized with the accusations of being lazy, ignorant and one-sided on any topic. Many are overheard saying that Cabrini is not diverse and that students are secluded to a number of cliques. An outsider may suggest that students start to diverge away from the same old “crew.” Joining clubs and teams may help an individual broaden their horizons. So how will special interest housing affect the diversity of this college?
Well let’s think. If you take a group of 14-18 students who are all interested in a particular thing and put them in one area of the college what are the odds that they will socialize with anyone else? It seems that these groups will become mini-sororities or fraternities socializing only with each other. They will walk to class together, eat together and hang out at night together. It would seem that special interest housing goes against every diversity initiative that Cabrini has started.
Mother Cabrini helped immigrants who came from many diverse cultures and social backgrounds adjust to living in America. Cabrini College should follow that example by helping diverse people learn to live together on this campus, not by creating dormitory “ghettos” that comprise of one dominant interest. The great experience of meeting new and interesting people will be lost under the segregational system of Special Interest housing.
Another topic to consider is the community service aspect. The point of community service is to help those who are less fortunate by giving of oneself in an unselfish manner. The college all ready forces 15 hours of community service on the Junior class. How selfless are these students going to give of themselves if they have to donate their time to live on campus as well? The best volunteer worker is a worker who volunteers, not one who is strong-armed into doing it because their resident status depends on it. That is not teaching the virtues of community service. That is a college trying too hard to look pious.
Special Interest housing is a step back for Cabrini. It will create more cliques, isolate more students, and will turn the college’s back on all the diversity initiatives it has instituted in the past. For a college that wants to be the jewel of the Mainline, this doesn’t reflect that desire.
