Campus Cultural Climate: A Minority Perspective

A survey was administered to sixty-five students at The University of Akron, to assess their sentiments toward the cultural climate on their campus. It was hypothesized that minority students, specifically African-Americans, would report lower scores than White students, as previous research has shown that students of color do not perceive their campus cultural climate in as positive of a light as their Caucasian peers. Despite previous notions, students of color at The University of Akron reported a more positive view of campus cultural climate than did White students. A correlational analysis was then done, to see what factors could potentially contribute to one’s perception of overall climate. Interestingly, one’s experiences were significantly correlated to one’s perception of climate, although White students seemed to have a more positive view of their college experiences than did African American students. Given these contradictory findings, it is evident that further research should be done, in order to compare other factors such as living on or off campus