In its second semester at the University of Idaho, the Black/African American Cultural Center provides an inclusive and supportive space for all Vandals.
The center, directed by Mario Pile, sits on the third floor of the Idaho Student Union Building, doors open, welcoming students into its space. Pile said he hopes that the availability of this space will help recruit and retain Black students at the university.
Only one percent of Vandal enrollment is Black, according to Pile. The center is a place where Black students can be seen and heard.
“All people need to feel heard,” Pile said. “Maybe a microaggression is being spoken over. This is a space to let them speak without being spoken over,”
Pile said that one of the center’s main jobs is to listen. He said a majority of the students he sees are simply looking for someone to talk to. He wants the students to feel fully understood before they take action in developing a solution. Pile works with the students to strategize a plan to resolve different situations they encounter on campus.
Josie Gaturutura, a freshman criminology major, said she has found a sense of home at the Center. Before moving to Moscow from Boise, Gaturutura’s brother, who attended UI, told her the school would not be as diverse as she was used to. However, spending time with other students at the center proved to be vital for her college experience.
“As diverse scholars, the main thing is to be successful. We have to show strength more than weakness,” Gaturutura said.
She said that she has found that strength within her fellow classmates at the center. She found connection and “more people who look like me than I thought when I first touched down in Moscow. We are not only a white campus.”
Leaders such as Pile have influenced how Gaturutura sees her Vandal experience. She said she has rethought how she lives her life as a black woman in society. Dedicated time to learn black history and hour-long tutor sessions coincide with Pile’s mentoring and guidance at the center.
The center also hosts and sponsors events. Pile mentioned an upcoming partnership with the Women’s Center. The two centers will bring in a panel of black women professionals to speak about living in Idaho.
“There are not a lot of spaces for all black women panels. We want to do this event so students feel seen, heard and see people who look like them find success,” Pile said.
Samuel Aguilar, a freshman exercise science major, said he has found overwhelming support at the center.
“It relieves stress just to know they are there. I don’t have to do it all on my own,” Aguilar said.
Aguilar moved to Moscow from California. He felt nervous moving to a new place with new people. He felt even more out of his comfort zone reaching out to the center. However, he found mentors to guide him and time to connect with classmates.
Korie Nelson, a freshman architecture major, said she appreciates the history that is taught at the center.
“We go over redlining and things like that in our class. It is not usually in curriculum. A lot of people don’t think it’s real,” Nelson said.
Pile works with students such as these three to encourage and support their experience as a Vandal. He hopes that this center is a space for all.
“Students can explore what blackness is to them. And those who are not black can use this space to take a chance and be willing to be uncomfortable in order to learn,” Pile said.
This article has been corrected, with Pile’s name being Mario, not Marco.
Joanna Hayes can be reached at [email protected]