Marcela Montoya Kcam isn’t new to change.
The freshman studying psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison was born in Mexico and lived in Arkansas and Costa Rica before she came to Wisconsin.
Living in two countries and multiple states as a child has helped her become accustomed to new environments, equipping her to adapt to an entirely new community in college. At UW-Madison, Montoya Kcam connected to both her floormates in her dorm and, surprisingly, her coworkers of all ages at Gordon Dining Hall.
UW-Madison is home to over 900 clubs and organizations that give students the opportunity to meet peers, bond over shared interests and engage with the community. The student population of UW-Madison comes from various locations, including over 7,000 international students from more than 116 countries. Out of this group, over 3,000 are undergraduate students.
Students from immigrant and diaspora backgrounds are able to connect to the Madison community, bonding over their diverse heritage. However, often this connection comes from unlikely environments and interests not related to their multicultural identities at all.
“I’m more used to being the new one,” Montoya Kcam told The Daily Cardinal. “Going to new schools and being just absolutely forced to interact with new people, you kind of gain this, I think confidence would be the word. Just confidence that everything is going to be fine."
Montoya Kcam described a smaller community she found by working at Gordon’s Dining Hall on campus, where she has coworkers of different ages, cultural backgrounds and identities.
“Being a part of smaller settings, I think really helps,” said Montoya Kcam when mentioning that many of her coworkers are Hispanic. “They'll always ask me about Mexico and what my favorite restaurant for Mexican food is here and then give me recommendations.”
Montoya Kcam said topics like race, ethnicity and culture can become socially taboo, and she thinks it shouldn’t be overcomplicated.
“Being multicultural can be kind of funny sometimes because I feel like sometimes people try to act like they're colorblind,” she said. “You know, should just be like, yeah, I am different and we can acknowledge that.”
At UW-Madison, Montoya Kcam recognizes the value UW-Madison has to promote diversity through the ethnic studies course requirement.
“Although they are a little annoying to take, I think it can be eye-opening,” she said. “Even that little phrase of ‘you belong here’ can kind of seem meaningless, but I feel like after you hear it so many times, you kind of just make your own.”
Justin Ocampo, a freshman business major who is Mexican, found community by involving himself in many clubs related to his interests in finance and management at UW-Madison. He is a part of the Association of Latinos for America, which offers networking, resume building and internship opportunities.
“They're trying to prepare us for the professional world,” Ocampo told the Cardinal. “I've never been to a club where people weren't welcoming.”
Ocampo’s parents are both from Mexico and decided to join the workforce instead of attending college. While his parents had the best intentions, Ocampo said they and many others who do not attend college may not understand how to guide their children into higher education.
“They obviously wanted me to go to college, but considering they weren't familiar with… the process and all that, they didn't know exactly how to help me,” Ocampo said.
The values of hard work and dedication are often taught to children, but navigating higher education can be difficult without guidance, Ocampo said.
Ocampo described how he wasn't a “good student” until freshman year of high school, and in the following years he worked to improve his GPA and involvement in extracurricular activities. He said schools should take on the important role of helping students like himself whose parents may not understand how to guide them in the application process much earlier.
“They help you out, like junior, senior year,” Ocampo said. “I don't think the school did a bad job of talking or with the advice they gave us. I just think they gave it too late. They gave it when you couldn't change it.”
DEI scholarships provide marginalized students with access to higher education, Ocampo says
UW-Madison is among 45 universities reported to be under federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights for alleged violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts. UW-Madison spokesperson John Lucas denied receiving a complaint.
Montoya Kcam and Ocampo see push back against diversity and inclusion at the collegiate level as a worrying trend.
Ocampo emphasized the importance of the scholarships he received for UW-Madison.
“Without them, I would not be able to be here,” he said.
Ocampo also sees certain benefits from DEI programs, like the opportunities they may offer for those who may not otherwise have them. While he recognizes the importance of these efforts to reach the underserved and underrepresented, Ocampo said personal skills should be most rewarded.
“It is valuable for giving opportunities to those who otherwise wouldn't have received them, but I still believe that certain positions or titles should be earned by your personal merit and not the color of your skin or your gender,” Ocampo said.
While Montoya Kcam has found supportive connections through her job and residence hall, she values university sponsored programs like the Multicultural Student Center which offer community for students with diverse backgrounds.
“It's obviously a step in the wrong direction,” Montoya Kcam said of executive action against Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts. “It's super important to have your community and having programs like the multicultural club and all that stuff is super helpful.”
