University of Virginia Library

Black Assistant Dean

The Coalition's reiteration of the Student
Council request for the naming of a black man
to a permanent position in the Admissions
Office has elicited two standard rebuttals: that
a qualified black man to fill the position cannot
be found, and the hiring of a black
admissions officer would be a case of "reverse
discrimination" and therefore not permissible
on either moral or legal grounds. Both of these
charges are invalid.

Just as when student pressure demanded it,
the administration "found" Mr. Stokes for a
temporary position in the Admissions Office,
as the administration could find a qualified
black man for a permanent position if the
University were to assign a high enough priority
to the search. As to comments concerning the
particular difficulty of finding and convincing a
qualified black man to serve in Admissions, one
is forced to define what is met by the term
"qualified." It seems that the qualifications of
an admissions officer include an ability to
represent the University favorably to prospective
students and to evaluate those students as
regards their ability to contribute to the
University community.

Qualifications do not include advanced
academic degrees or any special academic
reputation. It seems only logical that the best
man to represent the University to black and
culturally deprived students would be a black
man - more likely to be listened to, to be
understood, and to be trusted.

The second charge, that of reverse discrimination,
is the one most often leveled against
the hiring of a black admissions officer. Such a
charge, however, can be easily refuted both by
established fact and by logic. It seems that the
University did not feel that it was either illegal
or immoral to hire Mr. Stokes; the Council and
Coalition have only asked that his position be
made full-time and permanent. Too many other
universities have adopted the practice of using
black men in admissions work to accept the
argument that such an act would result in legal
action.

Beyond that fact is the obvious and
non-discriminatory logic that the best man
should always be hired for the job. The
Admissions Office admits that it needs more
help, and in the recruiting of black and
economically deprived students the best man
will be a black man because of the realities of
trust and communication.

For too long this University has been viewed
by the poor and the black of this state as a
school for the white elite. That time has passed,
and both the black and the white communities
have been slow to recognize the change. A
black assistant dean of admissions would serve
both as a symbol and a proof of that change to
the blacks. More importantly, he would be the
best method of making that change of thought
a reality reflected by increased black enrollment
in the University.

-Martin F. Evans