The Impact of Lectures by Diverse Professionals on Diversity Awareness: Pre-Post Changes

Despite the increasing diversity in the United States, minorities in the field of higher education continue to be disproportionately low. Worldviews on Education Lecture Series (WELS) was created to provide opportunities for students to have interactive dialogues with diverse professionals from around the world and nation. Theeffects of these lectures on diversity awareness were examined. Participants completed 12 items from the Miami University Diversity Awareness Scale (MUDAS) before and after the lecture. A series of paired samples t-tests were conducted to determine if the scores on the post-test were significantly higher than the scores on the pre-test. Compared to the pre-test, participants reported greater diversity awareness on the post-test. The writers conclude that given an opportunity to learn from a diverse professional, students can increase their knowledge and change their perceptions in relation to diversity. Implications for higher education and future research efforts are discussed