Slap in the face: Students, professors react to UNL shutting down Office of Diversity and Inclusion [Video]

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – By outward appearances, it’s a bright week on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s campus as freshman in the class of 2028 make it their home for the first time. But already, a shadow’s been cast over the semester. Some say the administration’s decision to cut the Office of Diversity and Inclusion calls into question whether UNL will still be home to everyone.

Students like Edajah Aden know too well that college can be overwhelming when you’re on you’re own.

“I really did feel out of place,” Aden, who’s helped lead UNL’s Afrikan Peoples Union, said of the beginning of his freshman year.

It’s a common refrain as teenagers take the leap into their adult lives, but it’s even more pronounced for students who feel like outsiders.

“I had a lot of culture shock,” said Renata Cadena, the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska speaker of …