University officials and student groups hope to stave off a drop in the number of black students accepting admissions offers from the University by fielding difficult questions at this weekend's Spring Fling.
Spring Fling is an annual orientation program held for black students who have been accepted to the University. The event is run by the Office of Admissions.
"Spring Fling always has been one of the greatest determining factors when students choose the University," said Will Eaves, former president of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
University Spokesperson Carol Wood concurred on the importance of the weekend.
"This is an important weekend for these students and the entire community," Wood said, adding that the students choosing to join the incoming Class of 2007 will become part of the ongoing discussions of diversity and hopefully have a positive impact on University race relations.
The racially-charged incidents at the University over the past year have forced the school to address misperceptions among prospective students and parents about the racial climate on Grounds.
"We want to show visiting students this community is working together and show the world this is a wonderful place to be," Dean of Admissions John A. Blackburn said.
To display the true nature of the University, organizers have incorporated into the weekend's program numerous meetings between prospective students, faculty members and current students to give parents and students the opportunity to voice their concerns, Blackburn said.
"Everyone knows what happened here and we don't want students to feel awkward asking questions," he added.
Blackburn further characterized the Feb. 26 attack on Student Council President-elect Daisy Lundy as an "isolated incident," and while a problem, the assault should not discourage students from attending the University.
Student groups also hope to showcase cultural richness of the University community often overlooked in local and national media reports.
"Everyone is putting it on a personal level to show the multicultural side of the University," said third-year College student Okem Nwogu, Black Fraternal Council vice-chair and one of the organizers of the weekend's festivities, which include a concert by multi-platinum hip hop recording artist Ludacris.
"The University has been getting bad press because of recent incidents but that's not indicative of the entire culture," Nwogu said.
Black Student Alliance President Myra Franklin also stressed that it is important to be candid but at the same time encourage the prospectives that this is an inclusive university.
Students and administrators lauded the traditional success of the program in attracting accepted black students to the University.
"What we find is that most people who attend will enroll," Blackburn said.
Both Eaves and Nwogu agreed that the recent racial incidents have contributed to "a more concerted effort" to put on a quality program this year.
The Office of Admissions has stepped up efforts to telephone students of other ethnicities as well because a poor racial environment is equally a deterrent for "right thinking whites" as it is to minorities, Blackburn said.
Director of Outreach Valerie Gregory said 160 students have registered to attend Spring Fling this weekend and many more students usually show up.
Black enrollment at the University has dropped over the past decade. The number of black students on Grounds, including undergraduate, graduate and professional students, in 1991 stood at 1,698. By fall 2002, this number had fallen to 1,436.
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