Hatcher, Judith S
Edge Perspective – Junior Year
Directions: Respond to the item below in the space provided. Remember that the report must be
written with the same attention to spelling, grammar, and professional presentation to which all
College of Business documents are expected to conform. At a minimum, paper should be two full
pages and adequately address the topic.
Topic: Discuss the numerous ways that you have experienced, and been affected by your exposure to
diversity during the past years. How will what you learned about diversity make you a better leader in
the future?
My definition of diversity is accepting and understanding the differences among people
of a different age, class, ethnicity, gender, physical and mental ability, sexual orientation, and
religion. I think that diversity is an important issue for everyone and will become even more
important as the population of the United States becomes more diverse in the future. Many
people work or go to school with a diverse group of people. East Carolina has a very diverse
group of students, staff, and faculty. Through my years as a military spouse, student, and an
employee, I have experienced, and have been affected by my exposure to diversity.
Many years ago I was married to an active duty marine. During my years as a military
spouse I lived in many different places and met people from all over the United States and many
different countries around the world. I think that the cultural, religious, and ethnic diversity I
experienced as a military spouse has enriched my life. I met some great people from all walks of
life. Even though we do not live near each other anymore I am proud to still call them my
friends. One of the hardest things about being a military family is being away from your family
during the holidays. Over the years I have celebrated the holidays with people from many
different cultures and religions. I have learned to respect the different ways that people celebrate
the holidays and have enjoyed learning and participating in other people’s holiday traditions.
Many years ago I decided I needed to finish my education. I was divorced with two
young children to take care of. I was very nervous about going back to school because I thought
that I would be in classes with students that would be much younger than I was. I soon found
out that Coastal’s students were diverse in many ways. Coastal Carolina Community College
had students from many different backgrounds, ages, religions, cultures, and ethnicity. Coastal
Carolina Community College sits in the middle of four military bases. Majority of the people
that live on or near the military bases come from all over the country and many places around the
world. The population in Onslow County is very diverse because of all the military families that
live there. Having such a diverse group of people in my classes, especially the difference in age,
made my transition into a college life much easier. I thought that my age would make me a
minority on campus. The age diversity on campus made me feel completely comfortable on
campus and made it a great learning environment for me. The diversity I experienced as a
student helped me feel comfortable working with and interacting with all different types of
people. After graduating from Coastal Carolina Community College, I was offered a job at
Coastal. I have worked at Coastal Carolina Community College for seventeen years.
As an employee of Coastal Carolina Community College I work with a diverse group of
people. The faculty and staff are very different by culture background, gender, age, ethnicity,
education, and religion. Working with such a diverse group of people has been a very positive
experience for me. I started in an entry level position and have worked hard over the years and I
am now the Assistant Registrar. I supervise many people that are from different backgrounds,
ages, education, and ethnicity. Having people that are diverse in many ways can have its
benefits and challenges in the workplace. One of the benefits is that a diverse group of people
can bring many different ideas and talents to the office. One of the challenges is taking the
different ideas and talents and pulling them together so that everyone works together as a team. I
think to be a good supervisor of a group of very diverse people the most important thing is to
have respect for everyone. I think it is also important as a supervisor to acknowledge the
differences in the employees and have respect for those differences. One thing that I have learned
over the years as a supervisor is that having good communication with your employees is
important. To be a good leader you have to learn how to take a group of people that have
different personalities, skills, and work habits and mold them into people that work as a team to
get the job done. One of the good things about working with a diverse group of individuals is
that everyone does things differently and that they all bring their own special creative thinking
and talents together to bring our office together as a team.
I think that being exposed to diversity as a military spouse, student, and employee has
helped me grow into the person I am today. I have learned some of the most important life
lessons from the many people that are or have been my friends, classmates, and coworkers. What
I have learned about diversity over the years will help me be the best supervisor I can be. I will
make sure that I respect the differences in the people I supervise. I will encourage my employees
to contribute to the team using their individual talents and ideas based on their culture
backgrounds. I will treat every employee fairly and with respect. I think that diversity in the
workplace is about creating a working environment where everyone works and learns together
with people that are not the same.