Union Through Our Eyes
PC: Robert Leslie (Left) and Dr. Little (Right)
Hannah Armstrong (Armstrong): What brought you to Union College?
Robert Leslie (Leslie): The Lord brought me to Union. I only had one friend that I knew here. She pushed me to apply to Union. I didn’t think they would accept me, but Union called me the same day I applied. Now I’m here.
Dr. Ricky Little (Dr. Little): God’s providence. I had plans to go to another institution to work. Everything was basically settled, and then things took an unexpected turn. Afterward, some friends approached me separately and told me about the job at Union. I told them that I would check it out. A stranger also sent me an email about the job opening here. I applied, we had a video interview, and I was invited to visit the campus. Later the job was offered to me and I accepted the position. That’s how I came to Union. I could see God’s hand at work and I knew this is where the Lord wanted me to come. It was unexpected in many ways, especially since I never thought that I would live in Nebraska. Union Through our eyes
Armstrong: Now that you’re here, are you happy you came?
Leslie: I’m very happy I came. The community of friends and the support system I’ve built here has kept me at Union. They’ll be family for life. I’ve had opportunities to become a leader within the community. That’s a huge reason I’ve stayed.
Dr. Little: Extremely happy! I can see God’s wisdom in closing the other door and opening this one. The position at the other university opened up again a year after I got here and an administrator wrote to me to make me aware of it. By that time, however, I was hooked on Union and didn’t even look into it.
Armstrong: Do you feel the statement that Union is a diverse college is a true one?
Leslie: I do believe that it’s getting there, but I don’t think that it’s fully diverse right now. There are other cultures here, but are all cultures represented in an intentional way?
Dr. Little: I think so. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the student minority population was over 40 % when I first arrived and was projected to rise to over 50% in the next ten years. At my previous university, achieving diversity in the student population and among the faculty was a really big issue. There was very little diversity, so I was very pleased when I came here and saw what the numbers were. I think Union will continue to make strides in increasing its minority population among faculty as well.
Armstrong: As a black man at Union College, do you feel that you’re treated differently?
Leslie: I haven’t seen it. Does that mean it hasn’t happened? No. I just haven’t personally dealt with it.
Dr. Little: No, I don’t think I have been treated differently at all. Everyone here that I have had any type of professional or personal relationship has treated me fairly, supported my efforts and been very encouraging.
Armstrong: Do you feel race is an issue at Union College? If so in what ways?
Leslie: The celebration of race and diversity has not been fairly met at Union College. We’re starting to get more diverse in our student body, but we need to be more intentional about seeking out the different cultures we have here. How can they be better cared for? Whenever there is a celebration in their culture, how can we celebrate it as a community at Union? Certain cultures are facing a lot right now. How can we support them?
Dr. Little: I am not aware of any systemic issues of race on our campus and I have not personally experienced any discrimination or bias due to race, but I have had a few students share with me isolated issues that they either experienced or noticed, which they believed were race-related at their core.
Hannah Armstong is a senior studying health and human performance.