hen most people consider the issue of diversity in higher education, they tend to think in terms of the ethnic and racial distinctions characteristic of a broad student population. Yet diversity and the benefits that come from it go much deeper. Although establishing a community comprised of various ethnic and racial groups is a necessary starting point, real diversity derives from an integration of elements that extend well beyond surface composition.
 

Diversity is inclusive of distinctions in gender, physical ability, age, and socio-economic status. It incorporates a variety of religious or spiritual beliefs, political perspectives, and covers a spectrum of cultural groups, interests and organizations. In higher education, all of these elements must be active not simply within the student population, but within the curriculum, and amongst faculty and staff, as well.

What's most apparent in today's classroom are the obvious visual distinctions within a group, recognizable elements such as the number of men and women present, racial and ethnic distinctions, and perhaps cultural identities, as well. One must look beyond the surface, however, to discern the subtleties: various socio-economic strata,

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