“The importance of being in a club like BSU is to give yourself an identity and a placement on campus surrounded by the majority of white people,” Branch said. This includes providing tutoring and counseling resources for students. The goals of BSU are to support, guide and bring educational assistance to black students. “The Black Student Union brings black students together and allows us to openly express ourselves to the campus so they can understand us.” “NIU is a diverse campus but sometimes you can feel divided,” Branch said. Her interest in public relations helped as well. Shantez Branch, director of public relations of the BSU, joined as a first-year student because it was the first organization she looked into. “It’s imperative for BSU to keep Black-conscious and make sure history is told by us.” “It felt like it was my obligation to join a powerful club on campus because it wasn’t just for Greek ,” he said. The Black Student Union was established in 1970, and Derrick Smith, current staff adviser of BSU, joined the fall of 1972. It aims to represent black students at NIU - a predominantly white institution with white non-Hispanic students making up about 53% of Fall 2018’s enrolled undergraduate students. DeKALB - The Black Student Union declares in its mission statement that it seeks to recognize and pursue social and cultural heritage awareness.

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