This year marks the midpoint review of Plan 2008.

The plan started as part of the university’s recognition of “the need to provide educational experiences, in and out of the classroom, that respect, cultivate and build upon the diversity that all groups bring,” according to the University of Wisconsin System website.

Marilyn Rhodes, UW director of the Multi-Cultural Affairs unit and system-wide coordinator of Plan 2008, said the plan is under close scrutiny.

“We’re deciding how to chart the next five years,” she said, adding that significant progress has been made in serving pre-college students, with numbers up 150 percent.

Student of color enrollment is also up by roughly 16 percent, and the number of employees of color has risen by about 38 percent, she said.

“We’re satisfied, but we still have a long way to go,” she said, noting the university is still working to improve the retention and graduation rates for students of color.

One of the main goals of Plan 2008 is to increase the number of students of color enrolled in the UW System and to “close the gap in educational achievement, by bringing retention and graduation rates for students of color in line with those of the student body as a whole.”

“The achievement gap is still significant between white students and students of color,” Rhodes said. “Right now, about 40 percent of students of color at UW graduate, whereas 60 percent of white students do. Our focus is on closing this gap.”

Chris Loving, President of the Black Student Union, agreed with Rhodes, saying he has seen great progress in recruitment.

“It’s in the retention of students that there’s no accountability,” he said.

Loving attributed the problems with retention in part to the lack of preparedness many students of color feel at UW but also to an occasionally racist campus climate.

“Because of overt or subtle racism, some students feel unwelcome here. I’ve seen a lot more folks come but not all of them stay,” he said.

Rhodes said it is important to keep in mind the Civil Rights Act is only a couple of generations old.

“It’s very hard to turn around 400 years of discrimination. But the campus climate and level of attention students get is critical,” she said.

Loving said the university has been very supportive of the Black Student Union, adding “anyone can join” who accepts the organization’s mission statement.

Rhodes explained the university can control some aspects of diversity but not all.

“We do have control over the quality of pre-college programs, the environment and opportunities students are exposed to on campus and the level of attention students get while they are here,” she said.

Should Plan 2008 fail, Rhodes said, “We’ve failed not just the students, but the whole educational system. This is about giving the best possible education to all students.”

She added the efforts need to reach deep within the campus.

“It’s not just the multicultural-affairs unit ? it’s everybody’s job,” she said, adding student government is highly influential in developing public policy. “I can’t emphasize enough the importance of a student voice on campus.”

According to Rhodes, access for low-income students has become a priority at UW, as on many other college campuses, especially since the number of low-income students has been declining.

“This issue has moved to the front burner on our board discussion. We don’t want to become an institution for the privileged,” Rhodes said.

Rhodes said when the university planned which groups to target in Plan 2008, the university focused on African-Americans, American Indians, Hispanic Latinos and South East Asians because those groups have been historically under-represented in higher education for centuries.

“Although ultimately race is a social construct and comes down to how an individual perceives him or herself…” Rhodes said. “We know that within the four groups we especially target there are tremendous needs, and institutions have a responsibility to address these needs.”

Rhodes believes after 2008 the issue will become even more complicated, but the university’s commitment to diversity will remain strong.

“I think the situation will slowly improve but not without some hard questions being asked,” Rhodes said.