Bucknell Student Government (BSG) hosted their second annual Diversity Leadership Summit on Nov. 12 at noon in the basement of Hunt Hall. More than a dozen club and faculty representatives examined issues that focused on increasing diversity and cultural awareness on campus.

“You see the same faces at every diversity group … I’d like to see that change,” said Alice Butler ’16, chair of BSG’s Diversity Affairs Committee.

Poor advertising and lack of intergroup connectivity might be responsible for low student participation, said BSG Diversity Committee member Travon Martin ’15.

“We need to bridge the gap between these groups on campus and get more people involved,” Martin said.

Sometimes students get confused and think diversity clubs and events are exclusive to people who come from the same culture that the club is centered around, but this is a misconception, said Bucknell’s African Student Association (BASA) Vice President Zoe Russell ’17.

“That is completely the opposite of what we are trying to accomplish through these groups,” Russell said.

Russell, who is originally from Massachusetts, holds her BASA position despite not having lived in Africa. Several other students are in a similar situation as Russell.

The billboard space between the first and second floor is another area that can be targeted to help students know what options are available to them, said Middle Eastern Student Association Vice President Tamara Hijazi ’17.

“There is so much information there … it takes me 10 minutes to go through everything and figure out what events are going on,” Hijazi said.

BSG hopes to increase communication between the BSG Diversity Committee and the on-campus diversity organizations in order to more efficiently tackle new initiatives, Butler said.

Assoc Provost for Diversity Bridget Newell closed out the luncheon by encouraging students to participate in a new student Diversity Council the Office of the Provost will be creating soon.

“I hope to hear from a broader base of students so we have a better idea of [their] feelings and thoughts,” Newell said.

Ben Miller ’16 and Tina Tiongson ’16 co-created the event after the University’s five-year Diversity Plan was announced last year.