The colleges should be free to pursue standards and policies that allow them to fulfill their diversity missions and visions. The students they educate will help provide tomorrow's leaders, and their college experience must demonstrate the richness and substance of our diverse, multi-cultural and global environment. The college environment should promote understanding and appreciation of others, while encouraging students to grow as individuals. In accord with this philosophy, the Association encourages community colleges to evaluate their hiring, admissions, and financial aid policies to ensure diversity and equal access within their institutions. AACC believes that diversity is crucial to a democratic society.
Community colleges are, in effect, microcosms of our greater society.
As such, they should encourage and enhance the fullest understanding of human rights and responsibilities and should teach the skills that allow their students to effectively participate in a democratic society. The colleges should be responsible for shaping an environment that mirrors the general cultural and creates opportunities for all within the college community to interact with understanding, tolerance, and respect for others. In this way, diversity in education not only serves as a model for the world at large, but it also helps perpetuate social harmony for the future. AACC strongly endorses the adoption of policies and procedures designed to counteract and prevent hate crimes. Hate crimes, are defined herein as crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice based on race, religion, sexual orientation, gender, or ethnicity, including where appropriate, the crimes of murder, non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, aggravated assault, simple assault, intimidation, arson, and destruction, damage or vandalism of property.