The red and black uniforms that will soon dot three local soccer fields symbolize a new approach to community diversity awareness to dean of the College of Humanities Robert Newman.
The college is taking what Newman calls an “innovative” approach to diversity outreach from the U, sponsoring the “Liga de Ftbol Soccer Mexico-Utah,” a youth soccer league comprised of 80 teams and 1,300 Hispanic youths along the Wasatch Front.
“In a way, humanities are the core idea of a university. The U should be a microcosm of the best aspects of our society, and diversity awareness is certainly very high among those,” he said.
“Ftbol is at the heart of our community…it’s a way parents get to teach their children something that they love,” said Salt Lake City attorney Yvette Diaz, who helped launch the college’s efforts by drafting the sponsorship agreement in Spanish between the two entities, pro bono.
Eventually, the college’s logo will appear in Spanish on all player uniforms, but Newman said the sponsorship serves a larger purpose.
“We live in an increasingly global society, and if we’re going to prepare our students to be citizens of the world, it’s absolutely essential we have a diverse society,” Newman said.
Diaz predicts the burgeoning sponsorship between the college and the Liga will be the first step in a new approach to diversity programs emanating from the U.
“There’s no loss in this…I think it’s a very creative and effective way for the U to reach out to the Latino community,” she said.
On paper, the idea of sponsoring a Hispanic youth soccer league may seem simple. But for the 1,300 youths who suit up every weekend, the gesture runs much deeper, said Tim McInnis, assistant dean of External and Alumni Relations in the College of Humanities.
“We want them to know the U is here for them…We want to engage them in their community and be seen as a friend,” McInnis said.
More than that, however, Diaz said the college’s sponsorship is building the foundation of a long term relationship between the U and Utah’s minority groups.
“We need to engage the minority community more…they want it to happen and this sponsorship shows the College of Humanities wants to be part of the forefront of diversity instead of waiting for the next big boom to happen,” Diaz said.
That first boom came in 2000, when U.S. Census Bureau statistics showed Utah’s Hispanic population had grown by 158 percent since 1990.
Diaz said she hopes other disciplines at the U will follow the college and develop a presence within Utah’s minority communities.
“I hope that other departments will follow this and that this sponsorship will create a domino effect,” she said.
McInnis said officials in the college have high expectations for the future of the sponsorship program.
“There’s a good feeling in this office…I think that we will sooner rather than later enhance diversity at the U,” he said.
Though nearly every discipline at the U offers minority scholarships and other methods to increase diversity in classrooms, Diaz said the hands-on approach taken by the college will have much greater benefits in the long run.
“This will be something that will be close to the children’s home…What’s nice about this is that the U is teaching kids how to fish, not just giving them scholarships,” she said.
Newman agreed, adding that the sponsorship is designed to play a greater role than getting children involved in a sport.
“We see this as a vehicle by which we can hand out information,” he said. Those efforts include translating brochures about what the college has to offer into Spanish and directly mailing information about U programs into the homes of players and their families.