January 30,
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Page 3
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Dedicated to Diversity
Schmidt committed to multicultural education
y Rachel Barry
'he Battalion
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^ heri Schmidt, coordinator of diversity ed
ucation in the Department of Multicultur
al Services, has not always seen the posi-
ive side of cultures coming together. Born in
Ingland and having lived in Hawaii and Pana-
»a, she knows what it is like to be on the re-
eiving side of discrimination.
‘1 learned at a very young age what it was like
ihen cultures clash and people don’t understand
if fach other,” she said.
When she was in elementary school,
ichmidt lived in Panama. The Panamanians’
mtward hate of Americans caused her to react
if •pith a similarly intolerant attitude. In the
me she spent there, she said she never made
k effort to learn Spanish.
'I didn’t want to learn it,” she said. “I thought it
tas an ugly language because it was always being
touted at me.”
Later, her experience at a National Conference
for Christians and Jews gave Schmidt a first-hand
at the impact people’s backgrounds have on
teir opinions of others.
‘1 was amazed by how people felt about others
teause of their backgrounds,” she said.
Several years later, while in graduate school,
Schmidt was inspired by a challenge from a pro
to focus her education in the area of multi-
culturalism. At first, she said she wasn’t sure she
mid do it.
realized how little I knew about race rela
te in this country,” she said.
After completing her master’s degree and
spending a semester on a ship sailing around the
., Schmidt’s persistence to find precisely the
ce wanted left her living with her parents for
nine months. The opportunity at A&M sparked
her interest.
“I was impressed with A&M,” she said. “This
was one of the largest departments of this kind in
the country. I saw a real commitment to diversity
here. People pick on A&M all the time, but we’re
really doing more than other universities.”
Schmidt’s experience with the Department of
Multicultural Services began with her advising
groups such as ExCEL and the Asian-American
Student Association.
Now, as the coordinator of diversity education,
Schmidt developed a University-wide diversity ed
ucation program far students, staff and faculty.
The student level of this program, University
Awareness for Cultural Togetherness, has been
the source for many of Schmidt’s best memories of
her time at A&M.
“Each U-ACT retreat has been a highlight,” she
said. “Listening to students talk openly and hon
estly to each other, that’s when I think I have the
best job in the world.”
Showing up the Ku Klux Klan’s visit to College
Station in 1993 was another highlight, she said.
After the Klan announced it would be holding a
rally in College Station, Schmidt decided to put to
gether an event to counteract them. And so
Whoopstock was bom.
“I saw student leaders put together an event in
two weeks to show the Klan they don’t have a
place at A&M,” she said.
Taking place at the same time as the KKK
rally, Whoopstock was a success, Schmidt said,
in drawing a bigger crowd.
“It was kind of like, ‘In your face,’” she said.
The students that Schmidt works with are
the reason she does what she does, she said,
and her job is more enjoyable as a result of
their work.
“When you take out the student element, it
doesn’t mean as much,” she said. “It’s just
such a positive way to interact with people.”
Beth Yohe, a senior speech communications
major and chair of U-ACT, has worked very
closely with Schmidt.
“She has been my mentor and has helped de
veloped my philosophies,” she said. “Basically,
she is what I want to be when I grow up. She’s
a tremendous role model for me.”
Providing the campus with a diversity edu
cation program is just part of what Schmidt has
in mind for herself.
“I would be very happy if the kind of work
that U-ACT does would become a part of the ac
ceptable way to be a leader,” she said.
Schmidt’s passion for her work comes, in
part, from her motherly instincts that kick in
when she sees people she cares about get hurt
by others’ ignorance.
“I used to be a lot more reactionary,” she said.
“But now, I’ve gotten to the point where I can say,
Teah, OK, that’s how you think and believe.’”
Amy Browning, The Battalion
Sheri Schmidt is the coordinator of diversity education in
the Department of Multicultural Services.
Director extends resources, direction to minority students
5y Rachel Barry
The Battalion
K evin Carreathers’ wall may be covered with
awards, but he’s looking around campus for
proof of his accomplishments.
“It’s as simple as walking across campus and see
ing thousands of students,” the director of the De
partment of Multicultural Services said. “You might
see a Fish Camp T-shirt on one person, or a sorority
T-shirt on another, and then you’ll see a U-ACT T-
shirt or an ExCEL T-shirt on another. It shows that
we have become a part of the fabric of this institu
tion.”
When Carreathers came to A&M in 1983, he in
tended to only gain a few years of experience work-
— Amy Browning, The Battalion
Wn Carreathers, the director of Multicultural Services, offers a safe haven for minority students.
ailne, The BatiaU^
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ing on a large university campus. Thirteen years lat
er, he says the students he has worked with have
been a major reason for his extended stay at A&M.
“They always say to me, ‘You can’t leave until I
graduate,’” he said. “Ill never be able to go because
there will always be somebody graduating.”
When Carreathers started working at A&M, he
divided his time between working on programs for
minority students and advising student organiza
tions such as the religious council and Lambda Sig
ma, a sophomore honor society.
A group of students felt the need for an individual
or an office responsible for some of the attention
they needed on campus, he said. These students
mostly wanted to turn to the recruiters that had
brought them to A&M for advice, but they were of
ten gone when the students needed them.
“They wanted someone who would be on campus
a majority of the time,” he said.
Enter Carreathers, who had experience working
with minority students and who was willing to work
toward the goal of creating a department where stu
dents could find the resources they needed on cam
pus.
In 1986 John Koldus, then vice president for Stu
dent Affairs, asked Carreathers to be on the commit
tee to form what has developed into the Department
of Multicultural Services.
“I was delighted,” he said. “It felt good, and I was
happy to see that he and others had enough faith
and confidence in me to do this.”
In the fall of 1987, the doors of the office of Multi
cultural Services opened in Bizzell Hall.
“At the time, we were considered part of student
activities,” he said.
It wasn’t until December of 1989 that the office
was elevated to full department status.
“The administration was pleased with our work,
and in order to continue, we needed to be at a level
that is more respected,” he said.
With more respect on campus and more office
space to work with, Carreathers and the department
expanded the services and resources they offered to
students.
“We wanted to look at the concept of retention for
minority students,” he said. “It makes a huge differ
ence in self-development and self-concept.”
Carreathers said the office offers students a home
away from home on campus.
“It’s a warm, friendly environment that they are
used to,” he said. “It allows, for a brief moment
through the day, to be seen not as the minority, but
the majority.”
Future plans for Carreathers include completing
his doctorate and working toward being part of a
free-standing facility in which the Department of
Multicultural Services is a tenant.
“It has been an excellent opportunity for me to
gain a variety of experiences and skills,” he said.
“Only a few days have been trying. Most have been
very positive and uplifting. I have made some of the
best friends in my life here.”
Highlights of his time at A&M include winning
the Association of Former Students Award for Facul
ty and Staff for achievement in student relationships
and watching students start from scratch and put
together the first Southwestern Black Student Lead
ership Conference, so Carreathers has as much to
look back on as he does to look forward to.'
“I can honestly say that I have a job that I enjoy
waking up to and going to every day,” he said, “and
not many people can say that.”
High school R&B quintet finds a safe path to success
ly Libe Goad
r HE Battalion
n loral and piano music flood the
hallway between the piano
^practice rooms in the MSC
dement. The clandestine area is oc-
Ipied by a singing troupe and two
dependent musicians, creating dis-
°fd for the passing ear.
The first room on the left belongs
“U-Turn, a group of five Bryan
%h School uniors who have suc-
“eded in turning their personal dis-
“fd into harmony.
Instead of being sucked in by the so-
Jdal ills high school students face,
fevin Holmes, Kevin Green, Terrence
’illiams, Eric Crumpton and David
'elds turned from troublemaking to
“Haborate their time and energies to
■"eate a brotherhood of voices.
Under the guidance of manager
oilip Madkins, a junior business ma-
“b and pianist Martin Hodges, a
fphomore general studies major, U-
"rn has been working to file away
°Ugh edges.
Madkins has provided a bridge for the quin-
e t He said his fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha, has
^ovided a larger performance avenue for the
J'oup. U-Turn entertained audiences at Apollo
dght with the Omega Psi Phi in November and
J the Southwestern Black Student Leadership
"nference last weekend.
“Different colleges were there,” Madkins said, “so
"-’as impressed with the response from the crowd.”
Departing from their casual appearance, the boys
$JI TURNI
ENCOURAGED
donned tuxedos for a formal appearance
last Saturday at the 9th annual Miss
Black and Gold Scholarship Pageant.
U-Turn members draw inspiration
from Stevie Wonder, Bryan McKnight
and old-school jazz, but their music
comes from a younger generation.
Joded and Boyz II Men are staples in
U-Tum’s repertoire.
Madkins took over management in
July and plans to take U-Turn to the
charts. He changed the name from
New Mentality to one that he said bet
ter reflects what the group stands for.
“U-Turn is about getting on the
right path,” he said.
Daily practices now fill the group’s
schedule, thanks to Madkins. He also
said he wants to get the group into the
studio and get a record deal.
“Fm trying to get a legitimate busi
ness off the ground,” he said.
Every day he picks up the boys and
drives them to the University for re
hearsal. He helps the boys learn song
lyrics and makes sure they sing in har
mony.. He also helps them with home
work. Then, when 9 p.m. rolls around,
he takes them home.
Green said he appreciates the time Madkins
dedicates to the group.
“If Philip hadn’t come along, we probably
would get jacked around,” Green said. “Philip is
the best thing that's ever happened to us.”
U-Tum buys studio time and stage clothes with
the money it makes from shows.
Madkins said that occasionally he has to reach
into his personal funds to help the group.
The R&B quintet U-Turn is made up of five Bryan High School juniors.
Shane Elkins, The Battalion
“He’ll do anything for us,” Crumpton said.
Sitting in on U-Tum’s practice sessions shows
how discord must come before finding harmony, as
they work repeatedly to perfect the song, “Got A
Piece of My Love” by Shai. After many tries, they
get it right.
The same happened when the group got togeth
er. Like the unpracticed song, the now harmonious
sound of U-Tum began out-of-tune.
The boys come from the south and west sides of
Bryan. Green said loyalty creates animosity be
tween students from different sides of town when
people proudly wear shirts with “Westside” and
“Southside” printed on the front.
See U-TURN, Page 6