by Elaina Powless

My name is Elaina Powless, and I am a sophomore Advertising major in the Newhouse School of Public Communication, at Syracuse University. I chose to come to Syracuse  because it is home to a very good program for Native American students.

Nancy Cantor has done great work as chancellor regarding encouraging minority groups to come to Syracuse University, by providing a very welcoming atmosphere and pushing programs that support affirmative action in higher education. Her efforts have paid off, and according to Syracuse University’s Fact Page, minority students’ account for 24.4 percent of the total student population.

Although there are minorities in Syracuse University, I personally feel that there is less representation in Newhouse. I believe this is because the actual communications industry itself does not seem like a plausible career path to minority students. There are not many main role models for young minorities to aspire to be.

As time goes on, the industry climate will change and diversity in Newhouse will not be an issue. Businesses have a strong demand for fresh points of view, and this move will integrate different people into the workplace.  I look forward to the day where everyone is represented fairly in the media and there will be a variety of voices in communications.