It's time to hold our future student leaders accountable to make their rhetoric on diversity a reality.

The student protests of last year were the impetus for administrators, faculty and students to take more seriously the concept of diversity at Penn State. Arguably so, they were the impetus for the creation of the Diversity Committee of the Undergraduate Student Government.

Now, wouldn't it be completely ironic for students of the Diversity Committee of USG not to maintain a working relationship with students of the Gye'Nyame Diversity in the Curriculum Committee, students who follow in the steps of protestors last year and have dedicated their school year to enhancing diversity at Penn State? Wouldn't that united coalition stand stronger? Wouldn't having one or two debates among USG members where the term diversity is casually thrown around serve less of a purpose than proving commitment to diversity and incorporating it into daily work?

With that in mind, I encourage all candidates running for USG, especially those with a commitment to diversity, to work more closely with the under-represented groups on campus, including the Black Caucus and to read the Plan to Enhance Diversity (2001) and the Framework to Foster Diversity (1998). We are critical of our leaders when it comes to issues such as parking, football and food in the HUB.

Students, maintain that critical stance in relation to diversity when voting for your representatives next week.