I found the article about Low Income Students that was recently published to be quite troubling. Sarah Phillips’ statement,”Unfortunately, we live in a society where your income goes a long way in explaining what your SAT and ACT scores are and what your GPA is. I wish that weren’t the case but that’s the country we live in.”
As a low income student I felt stigmatized by expectations that the interim Dean has on the outcomes of my academic success. It is true that because I am low income I must work outside of school in order to maintain an extremely modest lifestyle, however that does not reflect on my academic success.
Furthermore I feel that my presence at Pacific is viewed by Sarah Phillips as a deficit to the school. In reality, one of Pacific’s greatest assets is it’s focus on social justice and diversity. Pacific University has shown itself to hold the institution as responsible for social change by inclusion and opportunity for students from low socio-economic status to join a prestigious university.
If not for such a commitment to the well being of society Pacific University would just be an overpriced school with little to offer it’s students that is not being achieved by the local community colleges.
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