For students, fall of senior year means creating a list – the list – of schools to which applications will be sent in hopes of many happy returns.   There are some who make the list more consistently than others, Ivy leaguers, big state schools.  Some students’ lists have a catalog of small, private liberal arts colleges, and others read as rosters of the brightest in undergrad business.  The lists are not just compromised of heavy hitters; an entire class of less commonly mentioned colleges is drawing in a steady stream of desirable applicants: minority schools.

These colleges actively choose a population comprised of at least one third of students belonging to a specific ethnic or racial minority group.  Minority universities aim to mainstream students who may be marginalized elsewhere.  These schools are organized with a focus on the categories of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI), and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU).  In the eyes of some they are evidence of a commonly accepted behavioral norm – minorities in America choosing to spend time primarily with people of the same race or ethnicity.

Some believe minority colleges contribute to an ongoing marginalization of minority students in higher education, creating pull for non-white students to decide against integrating into a majority Caucasian school.  Active, willful segregation of students based on race is still by definition segregation, even though it has received the stamp of approval from its minority community.  In a certain light, the minority college harkens back to a time where separate but equal was the only way, not a chosen way.

When interviewed, a Howard student stated that although she was aware of the potential downsides, she felt positive and confident in her college selection.  Howard is one of the most prominent and well-known historically black universities in the United States.  She cited tradition, her parents were alums, as well as a sense of belonging as being among her reasons for attending Howard. She expressed no major qualms about the education she has received there.  For her, racial lines define the community she wants to be a part of.

While the significance of racial and ethnic solidarity among minority groups should not be overlooked, diversity is an important goal to strive for in American colleges.  A valuable element of higher education is interaction between students with a variety of backgrounds and upbringings. Students potentially sacrifice this facet of the college experience by choosing to attend a minority school; they narrow, but do not necessarily close, their window of exposure to people from entirely different cultures. The choice to attend a nearly all-white college poses the same major problem. An equivalent issue may be seen among religiously affiliated schools.  Even if it does guarantee some form of solidarity among matriculates, limiting who may enroll means concurrently limiting the depth and breadth of the student body.  It could easily be argued that a student has the most to gain from crossing racial or religious lines and choosing to attend a school with a more mixed community.