Equity, Diversity & Intercultural Programs

Equity, Diversity, and Intercultural Programs

Fostering inclusive diversity and intercultural competence

The Office of Equity, Diversity and Intercultural Programs, which includes the Multi-Ethnic Student Program, LGBTQIA2S+ Programs, and the International Student Program, supports events, programs, and partnerships that:

  • Strengthen relationships, intercultural competence, and global citizenship
  • Promote a diverse, inclusive, and just community
  • Advance the engagement and success of students from traditionally underserved backgrounds in the U.S. and international students from around the world.

Resources for anti-racism work

One of Minnesota’s most diverse universities, nearly two-thirds of Morris students come from one or more of the populations that have historically been underserved in higher education. This is a reflection of Morris’s distinctive institutional history and our mission and vision as a public liberal arts college where dedicated faculty, staff and students work together to build more vibrant and inclusive communities.

We Are Morris! A Snapshot

Breakdown of fall 2021 total enrollment by ethnicity:

  • Asian: 2%
  • Black and African American: 3%
  • Hawaiian: 0.2%
  • Hispanic: 4.0%
  • Native American: 28.0%
  • White: 56%
  • 15% of all students are registered with the Disability Resource Center
  • At least 10% identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or queer
  • Between 1-3% identify under the umbrella of transgender and gender non-conforming
  • Many of us are from low socio-economic households, transfers, and first-generation college students!
  • Many of us are “all of the above”

More detailed enrollment data

Research suggests that living and learning in a diverse environment is beneficial to everyone. Groups of people who are more alike prompt less creative thought processes and yield less imaginative solutions. The opportunity to build relationships and learn with people from different racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds supports better academic achievement because we encounter different ways of understanding the world and different ways of solving problems both large and small.  Opportunities provided at Morris to thrive in a diverse, close-knit community also lay the foundation for lifelong civic engagement and responsibility.

Values 

  • Access
  • Community
  • Equity
  • Excellence
  • Growth
  • Knowledge
  • Relationships
  • Respect

Skills

  • Academic success
  • Advocacy
  • Collaboration
  • Intercutural competence
  • Leadership
  • Learning
  • Listening, dialogue, deliberation
  • Relationship building