Depending on your mindset, the phrase “the more things change the more they stay the same” can be good news or bad. The pessimist might take it to mean that no matter what we do, things will never change so why bother? The optimist, on the other hand, might take comfort in the thought that even in times of great upheaval, there is some deep stability that will keep us grounded. If things change but we stay the same, is that good or bad?
The phrase was apparently coined by the French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr in 1849: “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” It is quite incredible to think old adages, even ancient ones, still ring true today. As I look at the world and at UH Hilo, I think I would choose the more optimistic interpretation of the phrase.
Several people this week have asked me about the impact of the recent Supreme Court opinion on affirmative action and college admissions. After all, UH Hilo has been named repeatedly as the most diverse university in the country. Does this diversity stem from selective admissions? No. UH Hilo has a diverse student body because we are located in a diverse community in a diverse state. With 50% of our students coming from Hawaii Island and another 20-plus percent coming from other places in Hawaii, our university reflects our community.
While for some institutions the Supreme Court decision might represent a significant change, things will remain the same at UH Hilo, and that is a good thing. Our students need to learn how to work with people who do not necessarily come from the same place they do, and diversity, whether it be racial, political, or any other kind, helps us nurture empathy and understanding. New ideas help us better understand ourselves and our world, both local and global.
Diversity does not ensure equity, however, and so we continue to work on increasing equity to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have equal opportunity to the opportunities UH Hilo can provide them. These opportunities evolve over time, but they also stay the same.
As UH Hilo is of Hawaii Island, so, too, is the education we provide. We pride ourselves on our emphasis on place-based education, education that relies on the geologic, geographic, environmental, linguistic, and cultural diversity of this place in which our university is situated. As an institution, we have learned over time that we cannot and should not take advantage of this place or take it for granted for the sake of education, but to create an education that is reciprocal in nature. If we take, we must also give back.
When we invite students through accepting their applications, and when we invite new employees to join our ‘ohana, whether they live down the street or across the country, we tell the story of this reciprocal relationship we nurture with our community and our ‘aina, how we are grateful to the Native Hawaiian people who first occupied this island, and how we have also integrated many of the values and traditions of those who came later. “Connecting learning, life, and aloha” is not just a UH Hilo slogan or a tag line; it is a value proposition as well, and one that does not need to change for us to evolve as an institution.
As new people join us, things change. We have educated the baby boom generation, Gen X, millennials, and Gen Z, each of which brings different attitudes and ideas to our doors. We have welcomed employees from other states, other countries, and from throughout Hawaii, each of whom brings new talents and new experiences to our campus. We are fortunate this fall to be welcoming many new faculty and staff, each of whom will bring something new to our community. That’s a lot of change, yet c’est la même chose because each of these newcomers will also learn our values, and they will experience the warmth of our campus and community.
And, of course, it is my devout hope that one of the things that will always stay the same is the way we give back.
Bonnie D. Irwin is chancellor of the University of Hawaii at Hilo. Her column appears monthly in the Tribune-Herald.