Sheila Ater ‘88 was a member of MESO, a Pioneer contributor, lived in MECCA House, chaired the Black History Month Committee in 1988, played soccer, and ran track. She was also a member of the Order of Waiilatpu Honor Society, and winner of the Jean Rasmussen Service Award.
‘Ocheami: Music and Dance of West Afrika’ was one of the many events organized for Black History Month.
MESO members Fred Capestany, Jay Aller, Marc Pitre, Robbie McKinzie, Alice Cho, Anita Vasavada, and Tyler Chin.
MECCA House members Robbie McKinzie, Brian Locke, Stafford Squier, and Carl Nishi.
MECCA House members Sally Nordquist, Sheila Ater, Marc Pitre, Beth Long, and Alula Araya.
MECCA House members Haunani Lemn, Mary Mills, Nana Addo-Kufour, Keiko Sono, Colleen Reirson, Joyce Tan, Usha Vatsia, Gretchen Ise, and Dave Bergevin
The original MECCA House.
Dave Hartsfield, Minority and International Student Advisor.
Carl Maxey with Robbie McKinzie at Black Awareness Month event.
Recruitment and enrollment of minority students at Whitman decreased in the late 1970s through the 1980s. The college faced recruitment and enrollment issues across the board and “in the discussions of the key issues…recruitment of minority students was not seen as a central part of the admissions effort” (Schmitz 2021, 51). In the 1980s, the number of Black students at Whitman had actually decreased from the time of the founding of the BSU in the late 1960s and early 1970s (Roberts 1980, 4). Dave Hartsfield ‘79, Minority and Foreign Student Advisor, remarked in 1980 that the number of Black students “got cut in half with each graduation; nobody was coming in and the school didn’t seem to want to do anything in that area” (Roberts 1980, 4).
A 1980 article in the Whitman College Pioneer featured observations of Black student life from students Tino Gregoire, Steve Pullens, and Claude Malary. Gregoire said that he didn’t feel at home at Whitman, where “the curriculum in no way promotes black history or culture”. Pullens felt that “[t]he problem is not that whites dislike minorities, it is that the school does not make any effort to help people adapt in general”. Malary agreed: “Sometimes you get the idea they have minorities just so it will look good. We have minorities, so it’s not a racist school, but it doesn’t go anywhere beyond that” (Roberts 1980, 4).
Another article in the Pioneer, published in 1986, centered the experiences of Black women students Vonda Sargent, Sheila Ater, Robbie McKinzie, Beth Long, Camille Clard, and Diane Williams. The women shared how they were constantly mistaken for one another, despite significant differences in their appearance. In their romantic lives, they’d dated people whose parents objected to “inter-racial” relationships, and their white peers made assumptions that they should be dating Black men. Relationships with white roommates could be harmful: “One woman had a roommate who moved out within a day; another woman’s roommate doesn’t speak to her” (Beach 1986, 8).
Despite their small numbers, Black students at Whitman during the 1980s continued to work to educate their peers on race and racism, Black culture, and their experiences as Black students at Whitman. Established in 1982 by students Kevin Anderson, Andrea Bell, Mark Francis, Roslyn Jackson, Mary Mills, Rodney Smith, and Terry Witherspoon, Black Awareness Week (which expanded to Black Awareness Month in its second year) was intended “to expose students, faculty and community to aspects of the black experience” (Anderson 1982). Organizers brought speakers such as Spokane attorney and “crusader for civil and constitutional rights” Claude Maxey, Seattle municipal court judge and member of the Urban League of Seattle, as well as Whitman alum, George Holifield ‘59 (“Month-long observance to begin” 1983; Whitman News Service 1986). Artistic performances were a consistent part of the program, including dance, music, and poetry. It also featured events such as a concluding all-campus dance (Henry 1982).
While a Black Student Union did not formally exist in the 1980s, many Black student organizers worked collaboratively to build more cultural understanding across the Whitman Campus. Two groups helped to support and sustain this work: the Multi-Ethnic Center for Cultural Affairs Interest House, and the Multi-Ethnic Student Organization.
Founded in 1977, the Multi-Ethnic Center for Cultural Affairs (MECCA) Interest House offered a living, communal, and informational space for students (Schmitz 2021, 55). Many of the Black student organizers discussed above lived in MECCA, including Sheila Ater, Tino Gregoire, Robbie McKinzie, Beth Long, and Diane Williams (Waiilatpu 1983; Waiilatpu 1985; Waiilatpu 1986). In the early 1980s, MECCA hosted “Talkfests,” which were “intended to provide about 20 students with a[n] intimate acquaintance with various aspects of American culture which they normally would not find in the classroom” (Street 1980, 6). Talkfests featured multiple perspectives in conversation, including those of students, community members, and faculty. Topics included “Hispanic-American culture, how America is seen by foreign students, and the black language” (6).
Founded in 1984, the Multi-Ethnic Student Organization (MESO) served as a support group for students of color on campus and had “an important role in promoting greater cultural awareness” in the Whitman community (Handbook 1985-1986, 28). MESO also sought to provide “a resource for the Administration and other students regarding race issues” (Ater 1988, 5). For example, in 1985, MESO sought to increase minority enrollment at Whitman by working with the Director of Admissions as well as conducting outreach to minority high school students (Lindblom 1985, 1). Sheila Ater remarked, “What good does it do to go to a predominantly white school if you are trying to become a whole person?” (1).
Despite the struggle to continue building community in a time of significant enrollment issues, students of color continued organizing together to create spaces that both supported and uplifted one another and sought to make change regarding race on Whitman's campus.
Over the month of February, we will continue to highlight the history of Black students' experiences at Whitman College. Check back each Monday throughout February to learn more.
-The Staff at Whitman College and Northwest Archives
Anderson, Kevin. Letter to the Editor. Whitman College Pioneer 94, no. 19 (1982): 3.
Ater, Sheila. “Multi-Ethnic Student Organization.” Whitman College Pioneer 93. no. 2 (1988): 5.
Beach, Jennifer. “Black Women at Whitman.” Whitman College Pioneer 100, no. 6 (1986): 1.
Henry, Patrick. Letter to the Editor. Whitman College Pioneer 94, no. 18 (1982): 3.
“Investment Advice.” Whitman College Pioneer 99, no. 11 (1985): 1.
Long, Beth and Sheila Ater. “Racism Here and Now.” Whitman College Pioneer 93. no. 2 (1988): 4.
“Month-long observance to begin.” Whitman College Pioneer 95, no. 15 (1983): 1.
Schmitz, David F. The Transformation of Whitman College: From a Regional to a National Liberal Arts College 1975-2015. Walla Walla, WA: Board of Trustees of Whitman College, 2021.
Street, Mark. “Talkfests return to Mecca.” Whitman College Pioneer 91, no. 9 (1980): 6.
Waiilatpu (1983).
Waiilatpu (1985).
Waiilatpu (1986).
Wuh, Paul. “ASWC divestiture resolution approved.” Whitman College Pioneer 97, no. 16 (1985): 1.
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