During a public forum on Wednesday, concerned students questioned the university's true interest and monetary involvement regarding the Multicultural Center.
Nataki Sanders, political affairs director of BSA, expressed her concern for the future funding of the Multicultural Center by saying Ball State has not given enough attention to the development of the center.
"If the university isn't backing the Multicultural Center, it looks like the university doesn't care," Sanders said.
Sanders described other university's Multicultural Centers as spacious, welcoming and well-furbished, citing the center at The Ohio State University.
Douglas McConkey, vice president of student affairs, Kay Bales, vice president of Student Life, and DeRick Virgil, director of the Multicultural Center spent an hour answering questions and addressing concerns posed by students.
Bales said the Multicultural Center receives only $7,000 in funding for the fiscal year. The Black Student Association, Asian American Student Association, and Latino Student Union combined receive $37,000 a year.
The Malcolm X Library, for example, contains an incomplete collection of various texts that Bracken Library does not offer. The Center's computer lab does not have Internet access (although a solution is in the works).
The university's apathy is not the only thing holding the Multicultural Center back. The Center is also suffering from a lack of donors willing to give something back.
SGA President Tolu Olowomeye said that when campus organizations ask for donations, they cannot dictate where the funds are spent.
Clearly, a university that prides itself on diversity should devote more attention and funding to its multicultural programs.
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