Grinnell CollegeDiversity Summary

Written by Akshay Bajaj

Akshay Bajaj

Hometown

Mumbai, India

Major

Economics

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According to the faculty, the percentage of minority students who go to Grinnell is comparable to other liberal arts institutions across the country. Still, there is only a small number of ethnic minorities on campus. This may be due to socioeconomic reasons—Grinnell is expensive. Unfortunately, there have been reported incidents of racism in town, and while this doesn’t represent the attitude (or intelligence) of all the townies, as a rule, they tend to be more closed-minded than college students and faculty.

Ideologically, it’s not surprising that Grinnell is an overwhelmingly liberal institution, and around campus it is more acceptable to be in a left-leaning state of mind. There are a few conservative students who love Grinnell as much as any liberal, but it’s likely that most right-wingers don’t even consider Grinnell. The College Republicans have about six members, but they bring in controversial speakers. Occasionally, someone brings up the complaint that the gay, bisexual, and lesbian community doesn’t stick together, but the counter-argument is that there’s no need for them to stick together because everyone is fully accepting. Gay and straight people take advantage of the Stonewall Resource Center, a facility that houses a sizable library on topics relevant to the gay, bisexual, and lesbian community. Students are also accepting of sexual experimentation, which also eases the impact of coming out of the closet.