According to the university’s 2021-22 Diversity Report, over 1,000 underrepresented minorities enrolled in graduate classes last year, which is 1.5% up since 2018 and 8% up since 2020.  The new transfer percentage is up .4% since 2021 and 7% since 2020. 

The university offers a variety of different student organizations and clubs for minorities on campus, touching on culture, interest groups, and more. A few examples of these are the Native American Cultural Awareness Association, Southeast Asian Organization, Latinos Unidos and the Black Student Union to name a few. There are plenty of organizations and clubs to choose from at  https://uww.presence.io/.

“Whitewater is much more inclusive than the town I came from,” Daniela Carrasco Melero, a first year accounting major, said. “If I had to give advice to anybody with a similar situation as my own, I would say get out there and talk to people. They are more than likely as scared as you are to be here and are going to want to talk to others.”

The university offers several different grants and scholarships to minority students. Some examples include the Summer Business Institute Program (SBI) and the King Chavez Program. Both of these are scholarships automatically awarded to minorities who fill out the FAFSA application. The 2021-22 Diversity Report also says that the Pell grant has upped its numbers 3.3% within the last years, providing more students with valuable assistance.

“Get to know the people around you,” foreign exchange student Quirin Eder said. Quirin is originally from Germany, and he is studying at the university to learn more about the culture in Whitewater, as well as take as many opportunities as he can. “The university really supports inclusion and diversity.”