by George J Elbaum

Front Range Community College (FRCC) has a total enrollment exceeding 19,000 students of wide diversity: 62% are White, 23% are Latino, and 15% are of several other races or multi-racial.  Of the total, approximately 4900 students attend the Boulder County Campus at Longmont, and although many enroll right from high school, 24 is the median age because more than 40% of students are 26 years old or older.

My talk was organized by Mary Ann Grim of the History and Women & Gender Studies Faculty, as part of her Western Civilization class which includes 3 weeks on the Holocaust, reading of Survival in Auschwitz, etc.  An active Q&A session followed my talk.  My initial contact with Mary Ann Grim was made only a week ago by Kael Sagheer, Education Coordinator at the Institute for Holocaust Education, Omaha.

After my talk Mary Ann Grim sent me FRCC’s statement on its philosophy of inclusion, which I appreciate for its calm and even-handed description and feel it worthwhile to include below.

“We recognize that the success of students and employees grows from a culture of inclusivity, equity, and excellence. We believe that our diversity, which includes a full spectrum of attributes, backgrounds, cultures, identities, abilities, beliefs, and ideas, enriches lives in the entire college community. We know that including and respecting our diverse experiences and values in all of our interactions at the college is the best way to promote student success. We also recognize that our differences do not have equal impact or consequences, and we acknowledge that our differences affect how we behave, how we are treated, and how we interact.”