The University of Michigan wants to improve diversity and inclusion on its campus.
The university announced today it will spend $85 million over the next five years in an effort to do so.
Scholarships for high-achieving, low-income students are a large part of the university's plan.
Rob Sellers, U of M's Chief Diversity Officer, says it's important for students to learn alongside those who aren't like them.
"We need to make sure that individuals have the skills to interact with people who are very different from them," Sellers said.
The announcement comes in the wake of racist flyerstargeted at Black students that were posted on campus.
Sellers said he and his colleagues "recognize how important those different perspectives are in terms of our efforts to achieve academic excellence."
U of M spent about a year meeting with students, faculty and administrators to find solutions to diversity and inclusion problems on campus.
"The students were particularly concerned with issues surrounding diversity, mainly the lack of diversity of certain demographic groups they see in the classroom," Sellers said.
Right now, black students make up less than 5% of the school's population.
