Students can try to influence faculty and administrators on the proposed curriculum diversity requirements at 7 tonight in Pollock Commons Piano Lounge.

The local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will sponsor the forum, which is devoted largely to student input on the proposed Faculty Senate requirements, said Jennifer Jackson, member of the NAACP political action committee.

The Faculty Senate is expected to vote March 20 on legislation making a form of the diversity course mandatory. The senate subcommittee on culture and race diversity is formulating the curriculum legislation.

"(The requirements) effect faculty, students and administrators alike. Feedback will be very important," said Gary Kelsey, University director of minority admissions and community affairs, and NAACP member.

Four faculty members and administrators involved in the curriculum change will give their views in five-minute speeches before the meeting is opened up for student comment and questions.

The speakers include: W. Terrell Jones, interim vice provost for underrepresented groups; Jerry Covert, associate dean of undergraduate education; Felix Lukezic, member of the Faculty Senate subcommittee on culture and race diversity; and La Verne Gyant, and instructor of Black Studies.

The NAACP formally invited more than 60 "culturally rich" student organizations to attend, including the Puerto Rican Student Association, Black Caucus, the Lesbian and Gay Student Association, and the Academic Diversity Awareness Project.

At last month's senate meeting the faculty held open discussion on the requirements that included two specific proposals for mandatory diversity courses.

The senate subcommittee on culture and race diversity's proposal would require students to pass either a three-credit "diversity focused" course or four three-credit "diversity enhanced" courses.

Focused courses would concentrate on issues related to "racial, ethnic, gender and/or global perspectives." Enhanced courses would devote 25 percent of their time to such issues.

The subcommittee listed a sample of existing breadth courses which "include some consideration of issues related to race, gender, ethnic and international perspectives." At the meeting, the NAACP will distribute this list which includes such courses as an Introduction to American Studies, Introduction to Women Studies and Introduction to Western Music.

John Lilley, provost and dean of Behrend College, proposed an alternative to the senate subcommittee submission.

Under this alternative proposal, diversity focused and enhanced courses would only study racial, ethnic, and/or gender perspectives, excluding global perspectives. Students would further be required to study global perspectives in either a three-credit "international interdependence enhanced" courses.