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Hampshire College
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Hampshire College - Diversity - Diversity - College ProwlerCollege Prowler2.31

Diversity

C
Where does this grade come from?View all Diversity rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Diversity Grades:

Quick Stats

African American 4%
Asian American 3%
Hispanic 7%
International 5%
Native American 1%
White 73%
Unknown 7%
Historically Black College/University? No
Tribal College? No
Out-of-State Students 83%
Common States of Residence
  • California
  • Connecticut
  • Foreign countries
  • New Jersey
  • New York
Student Age Breakdown Under 18: 4%
18-19: 44%
20-21: 40%
22-24: 11%
25+: 2%
Female Faculty 50%
Male Faculty 50%
Faculty Diversity African American: 11%
Asian American: 9%
Hispanic: 2%
International: 1%
Native American: 0%
White: 77%
Unknown: 0%

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

Take a deep breath before you touch this issue at Hampshire. In recent years, some of the most explosive campus debates have centered on diversity. The general consensus is that Hampshire is not terribly diverse, with mostly upper-middle-class, liberal, white students, and most will agree that racial diversity is Hampshire’s biggest deficiency. Some consider the College’s meager endowment to be a hindrance to diversity, but others contend that the College can and should do more to bring in a broader range of students.

The one area in which Hampshire seems to have an advantage over other colleges is diversity based on sexual orientation. Hampshire has a very visible lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) community with a number of resources and events on campus, including the annual Drag Ball, a dance where people act a different gender. In terms of political diversity, Hampshire is mostly left-leaning. Some conservatives—the minority—stay at Hampshire for the unique academic opportunities, while others opt out because of the left slant in classroom discussion,s as well as the overwhelming majority of speakers with leftist politics. When conservative speakers do visit the area, expect a protest from the liberal Hampshire students. Don’t come here looking for an apolitical experience.

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Hampshire Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Diversity at Hampshire College

smigliaccio

Political Science and Government '15

3.1
B-

Not So Great

Racially, there is not a ton of diversity. Hampshire does have a large international student community, making up around 11% of the student body. The school also has a lot of diversity in economic backgrounds as well as personal identities.

Mar 15, 2012

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Diversity at Hampshire College

12345678abcde

International Studies '12

3.1
B-

Getting Better but Not There Yet

While there are attempts at diversity and many programs for multicultural students, the fact remains that the majority of people on campus are white.

Jan 04, 2012

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Diversity at Hampshire College

KristinaMoss

Law '12

5.0
A+

Diversity at Hampshire

Hampshire has a increasingly strong commitment to diversity. Not only does Hampshire have the Baldwin Scholars program, which gives full four year scholarships to African American and Hispanic students, but it also reaches out to the international community and has an immense amount of geographical diversity. Hampshire has students from 48 states, and had an incoming class 25% non white students, which is phenomenal when compared to other small liberal arts schools. Hampshire has a very strong GLBT community which is celebrated by all members of the community. Hampshire is totally wheelchair accessible and even has a program in the Lemelson design center where students work on assistive technology designs, one student made a wheelchair skateboard. Diversity is a constant priority at Hampshire, something which both the students and the administration care about.

Mar 18, 2010

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Page 1 of 6
User rating for Hampshire College - Diversity is 3.5 out of 5 based on 16 user reviews.

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

How diverse is the student body in the following areas?

How diverse is your personal circle of friends in the following areas?

How accepting is the campus community as a whole toward someone who falls into the minority (ethnic, sexual, or religious)?

How would you best describe your personal political beliefs?

How would you best describe the political beliefs of campus as a whole?

Facts

Gay Pride

The Hampshire campus and surrounding area is, for many, a welcome respite from many less tolerant places. The atmosphere of the College and the surrounding area lends itself to open experimentation, with many students testing out new or different sexual or gender identities and relationships. Sometimes, it can even be an interesting switch of roles for the straight folks who in some cases might find themselves the minority. In fact, Hampshire's president is openly gay himself. Hampshire and the four other colleges offer many resources to the community of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender folks and their allies. For comparison, the local newspaper the Daily Hampshire Gazette has been publishing announcements of same-sex civil unions and commitment ceremonies since 1991, compared to the New York Times only recently doing so in 2002.

Political Activity

Hampshire has a reputation for attracting politically active students, whether that means working for politicians' campaigns or human rights groups, or for having hands-on experience with grassroots organizing. On campus, activity is oriented to the left, with many students drawn to various economic, political, and social justice issues. There is a pretty consistent core of activists and politically aware groups, and though conservative voices are definitely in the minority at Hampshire, they are not absent.

Economic Status

Over half of the student body receives some form of financial aid, but the general trend on campus is privilege, if uncomfortable privilege. The campus has student groups for working-class students, though these groups shift from semester to semester.

Most Common Religions

Of the religious affiliations, Judaism is perhaps the most visible. There are also Buddhists, Christians, Muslims, Pagans, Protestants, and Universal Unitarians. Hampshire College recently established a Spiritual Life Center with spiritual advisors of various religious affiliations.

Minority Clubs on Campus

There are ten primary groups for students of color and international students, as well as themed housing. There is one main umbrella organization called the Students for Under-Represented Cultures and Ethnicities (SOURCE) comprised of eight student groups and for students of color and international students: Forum for International Students at Hampshire (FISH), James Baldwin Scholars, Pan-Asian Students Association (PASA), Raices (Latino students), Sisters (women of color and international students), Umoja (students of the African diaspora), Mixed Heritage, and the Indigenous Students group (DIG). There are also two SOURCE affiliated groups: African Women and Men of Hampshire (AWAMOH) and Queer Students of Color and International Students (QPOCI). Identity housing includes a men-of-color mod, two women-of-color mods, a coed people-of-color mod, an international mod, and a Latino mod.

Did You Know?
  • SOURCE recently sponsored Action Awareness Week, where a number of students created a list of demands to make Hampshire "actively anti-racist." These 17 demands included mandatory anti-oppression training, additional faculty and staff positions in multicultural affairs, and residence halls specifically for minority students, among others. Through the persistence of students, most of these demands were or will be met, at least in part.
  • The College's fifth president Ralph Hexter is openly gay and has shared the past 27 years of his life with partner Manfred Kollmeier. Hexter is one of the few openly gay college administrators in the U.S.

Become a Contributing Author Learn more »

Most Recent Student Author View all

Name
Tal Schechter
Hometown
Stamford, CT
Major
Health, Science, and Technology

College Prowler is seeking talented student authors to assist with writing and updating the College Prowler guides to their schools. This is a great opportunity for a student to gain experience and tremendous exposure, utilize new media techniques, and share advice with high school students about what life is really like at your college.

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