Watching my children grow up has given me the opportunity to know that we are not always the teachers. We can learn from the innocence and courage of a small child as they boldly do the right thing. I have heard of my children, seeing another student eating alone in the cafeteria and without hesitation, walk over and offer them company and a warm smile. I have had phone calls from my kids, on several occasions and been asked to bring another costume for a child that didn’t have one for a Halloween party.
Sometimes we need to be reminded that adults, now more than ever, need our courage, company, a warm smile and a kind word also.
I had the good fortune of meeting Utah State University President Noelle Cockett more than four years ago when I served as U.S. representative for Utah’s 4th Congressional District. During her visit to Washington, D.C., and some of my visits to USU, I learned of President Cockett’s passion for education in her role as what she termed, “a facilitator in providing students with the best possible education and learning environment.”
I, along with many others, was deeply concerned when I heard recent allegations against President Cockett. I know her to be a smart, kind, thoughtful and inclusive leader of one of our state’s cherished educational institutions. It is because of the immense respect I have for President Cockett that I have entrusted my own daughter, a young woman of color, in her care as a student at Utah State University where she is studying mechanical and aerospace engineering. Numerous times my daughter has expressed her love for President Cockett, and she looks up to her as a role model. We now find ourselves a family of Aggies because my second daughter, now a senior in high school, plans to attend Utah State, like her sister.
As a Black woman and as member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have been in a position many times where I have been discriminated against based on the color of my skin and ridiculed because of my faith and minimized because of my gender — overtly or subtly. I know what prejudice and discrimination feel like firsthand.
In my several years of associating with President Cockett, I have sensed and witnessed her desire to facilitate a positive and inclusive environment from which all students can learn, regardless of race, ethnicity or religious affiliation. I, like any parent, followed my best judgement of character when I chose to send my daughters to Utah State — a decision I have never regretted.
I recognize that in some cases communication isn’t always perfectly translated. Perhaps, in this case, if we took a step back and realized there is no right or wrong side, just perspectives that need understanding and even clarification, this situation wouldn’t be as painful as it has been for the USU Aggie families.
In my opinion, what President Cockett has accomplished for this Utah institution is remarkable. She has vision, compassion and fortitude to create an environment for diversity and inclusion for all. She is actively engaged with students in dialogue about their world views and their experiences at Utah State — all for the goal to improve the learning experience. I am grateful President Cockett views this as her responsibility as a guardian to young adults who are often times recognizing and expressing their individuality for the first time.
I suggest that a college education goes far beyond lectures and homework. For young adults, many living away from home for the first time, college education includes curiosity, discovery and understanding of our unique differences. I’m choosing to be bold and do what my daughter who now is a student at USU, taught me to do. I firmly offer my company, warm smile and kind words and stand with Noelle Cockett and Utah State University in their mission to provide students and faculty with an inclusive learning and working environment.
Mia Love is a former U.S. representative of Utah’s 4th Congressional District.