The Undergraduate Student Government hopes that a survey on race relations issued last spring — to which 55 percent of the undergraduate student body responded — will lead to a comprehensive report later in the semester on how students feel about minority affairs on campus.
The online survey — primarily initiated by the Undergraduate Life Commitee — was sent out in February to assess the student body's view on campus minority relations.
"We determined that having a quantitative study as opposed to anecdotal evidence would accurately gauge the nature of relations at the University," said Matt Shapiro '05, co-chair of the committee that reviewed the responses. "There was no preconceived agenda; we were totally open to any responses we might receive."
William Robinson '04, former co-chair of the Undergraduate Life Committee, received input from various organizations on campus — such as the Black Student Union and the Fields Center — about the need for more information on minority affairs.
The Undergraduate Life Committee, which meets monthly with administrators and faculty to discuss issues on campus, hoped to learn more about students' actual opinions.
"We wanted to ask questions that we really didn't know the answer to so that we could express a wide range of issues,' Robinson said. "We were hoping to find out which issues people felt the same way about and which students didn't."
A committee was created to formulate the questions for the survey and identify goals the USG can pursue, Robinson said. USG president Matt Margolin '05 said in an email that the survey will be informative because it identifies specific data and problems. He added the USG has devoted many resources to this project.
When the results of the survey are released, responses will be broken down by class and race. Robinson said this will improve the value of the information gleaned.
Based on the results of the survey, Shapiro said he believes a combination of actions will be taken by the administration and USG along with with different ethnic and cultural groups.
Survey's significance
Margolin emphasized the significance of the survey.
"This report, in my mind, is one of the most important things the USG will do in my time in office," he said.
Robinson agreed on the important ramifications of the survey results.
"It's about the Princeton community understanding better where other people come from and how they form their opinions about where Princeton is now and where it could be," he said.
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