Part 3 of three-part series
In 2010, Dr. Lawrence T. Potter made history by becoming the first chief diversity officer of Allegheny College, a predominantly White, private liberal arts institution in rural, northwestern Pennsylvania. Here, Dr. Potter talks with Diverse about the challenges — and triumphs — of his new job.
Why did you take the job at Allegheny, over other potential opportunities you could have pursued?
I looked at three pathways: continuing down the road of private liberal arts institutions, looking at the HBCU path in terms of leadership and going back to where I actually got my start in higher education, as a third generation college student. And as I explored all three of these environments, I felt that predominantly White institutions — particularly the private, selective liberal arts institutions — still had a lot of room for improvement with diversity.
Given my skill sets, I figured that I would be most impactful.
So thinking about the level of impact that I could have in working with the leadership team to help transform an institution like Allegheny was the ultimate variable for the decision.
How would you rate the institutional commitment to diversity at Allegheny?
