As a Daily Collegian in-depth last week noted, the opportunities for Penn State students to branch out and genuinely learn something new about different cultures abound at the university.

What does not abound, however, is a large number of students who interact with students of different cultures. The university's good intentions of diversifying Penn State and opening students' minds seem to be lost on many students.

And is there any real surprise in this?

Arguably, no, there is not. The university cannot force students to be friends or to take an avid interest in classes about a culture that seems too far away or unconnected to daily life for that student.

The burden to diversify, then, falls on the students themselves. Freshmen students who live in a hall of 60 people who come from all across Pennsylvania, and maybe even the country and the globe, can get an early start on increasing the hues on their cultural palettes, by becoming friends with all the people they encounter. As Vice Provost for Educational Equity Terrell Jones has said, Penn State has never before had a more diverse student makeup. Two things must happen if diversification among the students is to occur successfully.

One is for the university's student body to diversify, which Jones points out is occurring. The second thing necessary for the student body to diversify is a desire on the students' part to participate in breaking down of racial and cultural barriers that seem to segregate students.

What good does it do if the university hosts a cultural event at the HUB-Robeson Center and the only people who see it are those involved in it and uninterested passersby?

If the university's end goal is harmony among all students, it may not happen as fast as some would like. If the university's end goal is that students should come to college to learn more about themselves and the world they live in, then there is hope for more immediate success.

Ultimately, people should challenge themselves, but only if the interest to diversify is there. The university needs to foster the interest in the subject area for all students who want to learn more about any culture. But, then it is up to the students to challenge themselves to learn something new about a race, ethnicity or culture.