MOORPARK : History Class Brings the Races Together

Moorpark College student Gregory Cleveland said he was surprised at first to see that he was one of the few blacks in his African-American history class.

“When I first came to this class, I expected more black people in it,” said Cleveland, 23. “I was like, wait a minute, more brothers and sisters should be here.”

Now, several weeks into the semester, Cleveland and other black students said they see advantages to being in the minority in a class about their race. Only about 10 of the 88 students taking the course this semester are black.

“I think it’s great,” said Sean Adkins, 19. “It lets me know that there are other races that are interested.”

Although less than 2% of the roughly 12,000 students at Moorpark College are black, African-American history is one of the school’s more popular courses, said Darlene Pacheco, the school’s vice president for instructional services. The course was expanded to two sections this semester.

Many of the students said they wanted to fill in the gaps in their previous education about black history. But others said they had personal reasons for taking the class.

A 19-year-old woman from Thousand Oaks said her father has objected to her dating a black man.

“I’m trying to get some education so I can stand up to him,” said the woman, who is white and who did not want to give her name.

During the course, instructor Ranford Hopkins shows how black history relates to current race issues. And the students said that class discussions of racial stereotypes and racial bigotry are candid.

“It’s like Prejudice Anonymous,” said student John Corbett, 19.