Minority Experience at Bryn Mawr

By Katherine b. '22

In order to improve the experiences of minorities in our school community, the Bryn Mawr administration has developed a new Diversity and Inclusion Initiative. Bryn Mawr’s 2020 Diversity Statement outlines the school's intent by saying, "The Bryn Mawr School is deeply committed to growing as a diverse, equitable, and inclusive learning community. We are dedicated to providing an education that is rooted in the ideals of equity and justice and that reflects the diverse identities, experiences, and voices of our constituents. As we strive to build a community that celebrates and values each individual, Bryn Mawr will engage in an ongoing review of our policies and practices that address bias and discrimination.” This Diversity and Inclusion Initiative will focus on curriculum review, creating a new way to respond to the community’s needs, and new recruitment and retention protocol, among other things. 

To gain a better understanding of Bryn Mawr’s plans for change and the current experiences of minority students, leaders of affinity clubs were asked about their thoughts on the matter. 

Asha W. ’23, one of the leaders of the Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA), explained that, while Bryn Mawr is initiating conversations regarding minority groups, “right now students in the LGBTQ+ community are being left out of those discussions.” Asha elaborated on that statement, saying that “I think that Bryn Mawr needs to not just invite minority groups to the table, but let all of them have a voice, and listen to them. It’s frankly really frustrating that Bryn Mawr has done so much diversity work, but has simply left LGBTQ+ students out of the equation.” As a leader of one of Bryn Mawr’s affinity clubs, Asha stated that she believes these sorts of clubs are necessary for making all students feel safe at school. She said “It means a lot to look around a room and know that you’re not alone or othered. It’s just a place to come and feel comfortable with your identity, and feel free to be who you are.”

MyCo L. ’21 and Iris Z. ’21, the leaders of the Asian Student Union (ASU), also spoke about their thoughts on the experiences of many Asian and Asian American students who “have felt silenced or frustrated because they are trying their best to educate others but are constantly being overlooked, pushed aside, or forgotten, because of the Model Minority myth where we ‘don't have it that bad!’” MyCo and Iris describe the way that many members of Bryn Mawr’s Asian community have been overlooked and say “this is especially the case for minority groups within minority groups, such as those identifying as Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian who aren't as represented very prominently in the greater student body.” They also want more conversations about diversity to happen outside of the various affinity clubs. These clubs are spaces to connect students “with those who share the same experiences,” however “for students to voice their thoughts with those who are like-minded, nothing is being done if we are only talking amongst ourselves.”

While Bryn Mawr has not announced all of the details about the Diversity and Inclusion Initiative, we hope that these concerns and experiences of minority experiences will be addressed.