On Thursday, admitted students of a Latino/a background began arriving for the Duke Latino Student Recruitment Weekend. Organized largely by Mi Gente, LSRW is an opportunity for minority students to explore Duke and celebrate cultural diversity.
LSRW-specific events include a reggaeton concert, a dinner and dance at the Washington Duke Inn, and an opportunity to attend Duke's Mezcla show.
“I think it’s a great program,” said freshman Julian Salazar, who attended a day of Blue Devil Days as well as participating in LSRW, and is currently hosting students for both. “It’s definitely different from Blue Devil Days, just from the experience of hosting both of them.”
There are some criticisms of hosting weekends such as LSRW, or a similar weekend focused on minorities called the Black Student Alliance Invitational. Some have expressed concern that the weekends actually decrease diversity and promote self-segregation among minority groups before they are even attending the school.
However, others feel that these criticisms are unwarranted, maintaining that minority recruitment weekends are meant to celebrate culture and provide minority students with support networks.
It is also important to note that, at least in the case of LSRW, events are shared with Blue Devil Days events, allowing students from both programs to meet.
“LSRW is integrated into the Blue Devil Days schedule, so its not like they’re all off on their own doing their own thing,” Salazar commented.
Students who have attended the weekend expressed positive feedback.
“It’s given me an opportunity to know about Duke,” said Peter Harvey Jr., an accepted student of the Class of 2015. “It’s intimate, and I discovered a lot of things that if I didn’t go on this program, I wouldn’t have known about.”
Salazar also mentioned that one of the aspects he enjoyed about LSRW was that it introduced him to Duke’s Latino community, an integral support network for many Latino students.
“I think [LSRW] helps you get in touch with the Latino community,” Salazar said. “It’s definitely a gateway into the community.”
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