St. Cloud State Seeks to Overcome Legacy of Intolerance

St. Cloud State Seeks to Overcome Legacy of Intolerance: For a decade, St. Cloud State University has worked to change a broad climate of intolerance that had pervaded the campus of the second-largest university in Minnesota. How much change has occurred, though, is a matter of debate. Minority enrollment and faculty of color have increased. The provost is Indian, and the dean of education is Ghanaian. The number of discrimination complaints and lawsuits—once unusually high—has plummeted.

Incidents of open harassment on campus also have declined, judging from local news reports. Several initiatives to systematically address racism, anti-Semitism, sexism and homophobia have been institutionalized.