My Road to Diversity

By Philip J. Miller

When our dean, Mike Knetter, first approached me about altering my responsibilities to include our diversity efforts in the School of Business, I viewed it as both an intriguing challenge and a notion evoking some reservation. I was raised in a family where cultural differences, both domestic and international, were sought after, appreciated and celebrated. In high school, I participated in a student exchange program that changed my life and my view of others who were different from me, my family and my community. We hosted a student from Ecuador in our home for several months. The following year, I lived abroad with a family in Brazil.

Philip J. Miller

Subsequent experiences strengthened my hunger for knowledge about others' lives, experiences, and cultures. Just after my graduation from high school, my parents moved to San Antonio, and I eventually ended up there at least in part because of the allure of a fascinating mix of cultures in that south Texas city.

My work with the City of San Antonio Department of Planning and Community Development and my active involvement in a huge downtown church noted for its many community and social services gave me daily exposure to a wide range of people with differing socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.

A short time later, I was one of only two Caucasian students selected for a unique multidisciplinary master's degree program in Urban Studies at Trinity University. My world view changed completely as I studied the burning urban problems of the day (housing, education, taxation, political action, employment opportunity, historic preservation, etc.) with African American and Hispanic American students from all over the U.S. under the guidance of one of the most highly recognized African American scholars in higher education at the time. Additional studies in higher education and the jobs that followed further shaped my perspectives as I studied with, worked with and learned from others who were different from me.

So, with my passions, interests and experiences, what reservations might I possibly have had about taking on the new role in the School of Business? Quite honestly, most individuals responsible for diversity initiatives on campuses and in industry are members of underrepresented minority groups themselves. I thought, "What will people think a middle-aged white guy brings to the diversity dialogue?" But the more I thought about it, the more I became convinced that I do have something unique to add--and a strong commitment toward it, as well.

Yes, I grew up white in an area of the country that is not very diverse in any of the ways we define it today. However, my family and the social groups with which we interacted as I was growing up taught me to value cultural and individual differences early on. Across more than 40 years, I have studied with, worked with, lived with, worshiped with, celebrated with, and mourned with individuals and groups from very diverse cultural backgrounds. This good fortune has, I believe, prepared me to assist the School of Business to create and to realize a strategy that affords "others" (however we may define them) the opportunity to achieve success in their education, and, ultimately, in an upward progression in their field of choice.

"Diversity" is a word meaning many things to many people. The definition changes with the environment to which it is applied and in which it is used. I may define diversity as underrepresented individuals from various racial and ethnic backgrounds; indigenous peoples; women from scientific, mathematical, engineering and technical backgrounds; international populations; first-generation college students; individuals from homogeneous and/or rural environments; the economically disenfranchised; the learning disabled; and other groups not typically found in our student populations or subsequent management roles.

Whatever the circumstances, whatever the makeup of an environment that causes a lack of diverse points of view, with just a little effort we can apply principles of tolerance, understanding and open-mindedness that will lead everyone involved to better mutual understanding, more comprehensive perspectives and a richer quality of life in work, study and play. Idealistic? Yes, perhaps. But my own experiences indicate this is a rational approach to life--and an indispensable one.

Philip J. Miller is assistant dean for the learning environment and is responsible for developing initiatives to improve diversity among students, faculty and staff. He also coordinates the school's Ph.D. program and leads initiatives aimed at assisting at-risk students.