OU requires freshman diversity class

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) – University of Oklahoma freshmen will now be required to take a five-hour course dealing with diversity issues before completing their first year of college.

The course will start in the upcoming fall semester. Tulsa media outlets report it is part of a larger project to provide a more diverse faculty and student body at the school, which was rocked by a March scandal involving video of a racist chant by members of a fraternity.

Jabar Shumate, vice president of university community, says the course will discuss histories, backgrounds and cultures among students and alumni. He was recently hired to focus on improving and sustaining efforts to diversify the campus.