Like many in the African-American community, Norris Chase was concerned with the reaction towards the events in Ferguson, Missouri and New York City over the past year. Having seen the events unfold from afar, Chase came up with a way to allow college students to voice their concerns about race in a constructive and informative way.

“I wanted to give students a chance to talk about critical issues outside of social media,” Chase, who is the interim head of Bradley University’s Multicultural Student Services said after the third meeting of “The Conversation Continues”, a four-part series that includes input from community leaders and school officials.

The third part included a presentation from Bradley’s associate vice president for enrollment management, Justin Ball, who explained the various strategies Bradley’s admissions department uses to recruit minority students.

Ball talked about Bradley’s presence at college fairs, their involvement with various outreach programs for minorities, and various events that allow students to get a feel for college, through involvement with peers.

“All of these are means to an end,” Ball explained during the presentation.

Over the past three years, Bradley’s minority admittance percentage has increased by five percent, from 16 percent to 21.3 percent. However, Ball explained that getting students enrolled is a challenge onto itself.

“Only 8-11 percent of (minority) students actually enroll,” Ball said.

Ball and Chase were looking for feedback through the event, and some interesting ideas were floated.

Students were frustrated by a lack of promotional opportunities for minority students. Others were frustrated by the lack of knowledge about opportunities for minority students through the recruiting arm of the school.

The feedback came far and wide, in a discussion that was lively and energetic, but also informative.

Chase hyped up the various programs that the MSS has taken on, including the institution of formal month long schedules for Hispanic Heritage and Black History Months, and the ability to mingle with alumni during special events throughout the year.

Students who came to the event were pleased, Caprice Box, a junior public relations major, compared the meeting favorably with an event put on by the Student Senate in the Fall.

“I wanted to come and voice my opinion, because other events haven’t really been able to seriously address our needs,” Box said.

Box works as a programming intern with MSS, organizing the alumni events and other group get-togethers.

“I work within logistics, putting up flyers, organizing word of mouth,” Box said.

MSS does use social media to attract students, with Ryan Hoskins coming to the event after being brought to its attention via social media.

“There really isn’t any kind of organization that does things similar to this,” Hoskins said.

“I admire the fact that they are trying to do useful things and try to make an impact on the campus community,” Hoskins explained.

Hoskins wanted to learn about new organizations, as he had struggled to find his place on campus during his first 2 years as a student.

Bradley’s MSS is in a state of flux, having undergone massive changes to its overall structure. Chase explained these changes, including the institution of a mentoring program that has increased from about 40, during his portion of the presentation. The MSS will also take on a brand new name in the coming year, becoming known as the Office of Diversity and Inclusion in the fall of 2015.

“This allows us to rebrand ourselves, as well as providing new opportunities for students and allowing us to connect with them better,” Chase said.

Chase was encouraged by the turnout at the event.

“We would like to give students a chance to have critical conversations about these issues,” Chase said

A fourth and final event in the series is scheduled for April.

More on The Conversation Continues…