Diversity

Despite its setting in a rural Midwestern community, Northwestern's student population is becoming more racially diverse. Approximately 11% of our undergraduate students are students of color, and another 3% are international students.

In a recent student survey, 98% of Northwestern’s students of color were happy with their residence life experience. In that same survey, 92% said a sense of community is important to them, while 91% agreed or strongly agreed that they feel a sense of belonging on campus and in their residence hall.

• Northwestern's student body includes students from 23 different countries.
• Among our faculty and staff are individuals from Argentina, Canada, China, Mexico, South Korea, Taiwan and Zambia.
• A number of our faculty and staff have lived, studied or served in more than 30 countries, including Argentina, Bahrain, China, Ecuador, Greece, Indonesia, Mexico, Oman, Romania, South Africa, Spain and Thailand.

Northwestern regularly invites speakers to campus to explore issues of racial reconciliation and social justice. In addition to chapel, opportunities for learning take place during Wednesday morning Ngage panels on hot-issue topics, and evening NedTalks, Northwestern’s faith version of TED Talks.

Scholarships of $2,500 are available to multicultural students who are accepted into Northwestern's Bridge Scholars program. To be eligible for the Bridge Scholars program, you must:

• Be a member of a historically underrepresented population living in the U.S.
• Have a high school GPA of 2.5 or above and an ACT score of 21 or above (or an SAT score of 1060 or above)
• Demonstrate academic and leadership potential as well as the desire and commitment to develop further as a learner and leader while in college.

The $2,500 scholarship is awarded annually to Bridge Scholars who maintain a college GPA of at least 2.5 and meet program participation requirements.

Apply by March 31

Apply now

• Northwestern offers semester-long study abroad programs in Oman, Romania and dozens of other countries around the globe. Learn more
• Spring Service Partnership trips offered each March give students cross-cultural experiences here in the U.S. and internationally. Learn more
• Northwestern's Summer of Service program gives students the opportunity to spend up to 10 weeks serving in an overseas hospital, school, refugee camp or other mission setting. Learn more

Guided by the biblical narrative of creation, fall, redemption and restoration, Northwestern College strives to pursue God’s redeeming work in the world by courageously and faithfully engaging the fullness of our similarities and differences in our learning and living together.

We embrace diversity in God’s creation, 

• valuing each person as created in the image of the triune God and thus intended for community
• respecting the complexity of human identities
• recognizing human difference as central to an education that fosters critical thinking, empathy and dialogue

We lament human brokenness,

• grieving our thoughts, words and actions that diminish, caricature or isolate one another
• confessing our failure to hear and respond to marginalized voices on campus and in the world
• recognizing our past and current participation in unjust social systems
• repenting from any form of dehumanization that distorts God’s creation

We reconcile with one another,

• bridging divisions that separate people from one another and from God
• partaking in courageous conversations where varied perspectives are welcome
• challenging unjust systems of power, privilege, and oppression
• building and sustaining social structures that foster the common good

We embody shalom,

• anticipating restored creation, where people from every nation, tribe and language worship God and live in harmony
• pursuing human flourishing in our relationships, curriculum, staffing, resource allocation and corporate actions
• affirming that all things hold together in Christ, to the glory of God

An eight-member team appointed by the President’s Cabinet to champion diversity initiatives, the Diversity Resource Committee supports the college’s Vision for Diversity by:

• Championing the recruitment and retention of a diversity faculty, staff, board of trustees and student body to achieve higher enrollment and employment access and equity;
• Nurturing an inclusive campus climate in which members of the Northwestern College community feel a sense of belonging and are able to participate meaningfully in the life of the institution;
• Ensuring faculty, staff and students receive preparation to teach, learn and live in a diverse world that is interconnected; and
• Promoting intercultural humility and competencies through scholarship and research focused on domestic, international and intersectional issues of diversity.