Forum set to discuss diversity

      Has the nation progressed regarding diversity and if so, how far, and how much farther must Americans go to ensure a prosperous 21st century? These are questions a UNLV forum on diversity later this month hopes to answer.
      "The topic of diversity is certainly timely," said Velicia McMillian-Herron, UNLV's director of multicultural student affairs. "With the approach of a new century it seems an ideal time to assess exactly where we are in terms of diversity so that we can chart our course for the future. It will be interesting to learn what insights the panelists can give."
      Panelists for the Jan. 25 forum include Linda Chavez, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Equal Opportunity; William Gray III, a former Congressman who is now chief executive officer of the The College Fund/UNCF; and author and historian David Halberstam. ABC News correspondent Carole Simpson will moderate.
      Start time is 7:30 p.m. inside Artemus Ham Hall. The forum is free but tickets are required. They can be picked up at the Performing Arts Center box office at Ham Hall or by calling 895-3801. The forum is part of UNLV's Barrick Lecture Series, which brings nationally and internationally known speakers to hold forums.
      The New York Times has described Chavez as "an influential voice on civil rights policy," while the Washington Post has said she's one of "a new generation of intellectuals (seeking) to question the orthodoxies of the civil rights establishment."
      Chavez authored the book "Out of the Barrio: Toward New Politics of Hispanic Assimilation," and in 1995 founded the Center for Equal Opportunity, a private nonprofit research institution.
      Gray has been president and chief executive officer of The College Fund/UNCF since 1991, helping the nation's oldest and most successful organization for assisting blacks with financing higher education set new philanthropic records and expand programming. A former congressman, he also chaired the Democratic Caucus and later became the party's majority whip.
      Halberstam won the Pulitzer Prize at 30 for his reporting on Vietnam. He rose to prominence in the early 1960s as one of handful of American journalists who reported about the war being lost.
      He later authored several books including "The Best and the Brightest," which details how the Kennedy and Johnson administrations led America to war; "The Powers that Be," a chronicle of the modern media's growing influence; and "The Reckoning," which details Japan's rise to economic superpower status.
      A 20-year veteran of television broadcasting, Simpson anchors ABC's World News Sunday and substitutes for Peter Jennings on World News Tonight. She's anchored live stories covering a myriad of topics including: the Persian Gulf War, the Tiananmen Square massacre, the fall of Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos and Nelson Mandela's release from prison.
      Ann Casados-Mueller, director of diversity initiatives at UNLV, praised the panelists.
      "There's no doubt that we stand on the threshold of change, with today's classrooms and workplaces filled with a greater diversity than any other time in our nation's history," she said. "I'm sure this will be a lively and informative evening."