Lipscomb president to meet with black students in wake of cotton stalk controversy

Lipscomb University President Randy Lowry said he would meet with black students this week in the wake of a controversy over the decor and food at a dinner in his home.

Lowry said he would make "special efforts" to talk to students who were offended by cotton stalk centerpieces that were set out last week for the dinner he hosted for black students enrolled at Lipscomb.

"We'll invest a lot of time this week talking with students and trying to understand at deeper levels," he said. "Rather than running away from something, I'll lean into those kinds of conversations and relationships."

► More: Lipscomb president apologizes for cotton stalk centerpieces

Some students took to social media to criticize the centerpieces, which they considered a callous symbol of slavery. Students also took issue with the menu, which featured collard greens and corn bread a day after Latino students had come to Lowry's house for fajitas.

On social media, students described Lowry's initial reaction to their concerns as flippant. They said he brushed aside their concerns and suggested cotton was not offensive.

Lowry issued a public apology to the students on Friday and doubled down Monday in an interview with USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee, saying he understood students' concerns and would continue to seek forgiveness.

"You roll these things back and you wish you would have spent more time here and said these words more carefully," he said during an interview from his office. "The bottom line is students were invited to my house for dinner. And I wanted to host them and celebrate their being at this university. I am extraordinarily sorry that anything got in the way of that.

"I can ensure you that none of that was intended."

President touts history of growing diversity at Lipscomb

The controversy comes at a time when Lipscomb has worked to become more diverse.

Lowry said improving diversity at Lipscomb has been one of his top priorities since he arrived on campus in 2005. During his tenure, minority enrollment has grown by 357 percent, according to university records.

Minority students now make up 23 percent of the student body.

Lowry has been particularly forceful in his defense of Lipscomb students who entered the country illegally as children or overstayed visas. Lipscomb was among the first university's in the area to actively recruit and enroll the students.

When President Donald Trump announced plans to end a program that allows many of those students to live and work here, Lowry pledged to stand by them.

Lowry said last week's dinner would not stop long-running efforts to improve the campus climate and support minority students.

"It doesn't hurt the goal. It doesn't change the mission. I think it acknowledges that we're not perfect," he said. "We always seek to be perfect but we never expected we would be — even the president of the university."

Students see 'good intentions,' but also broader problems

The USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee contacted more than a dozen Lipscomb students about the controversy. Many of those students didn't want to comment publicly about the university's president but questioned the use of the centerpieces.

Sara Andrew, a junior who is black, said she thought Lowry had "good intentions" for the dinner, which she did not attend. Lowry said he regularly hosts dinners for different student groups.

But Andrew said the cotton stalks were "distasteful."

"We live in the South and we all know the history," she said.

Andrew said she hoped Lowry would continue to apologize and forge connections in smaller, more personal settings. She was hopeful those interactions might improve day-to-day tensions that exist on campus.

Nolan Weeks, a freshman who is white, said he didn't believe Lowry set out to offend anyone, but it’s understandable how it came off as racist, especially when Hispanic students were served fajitas and black students were greeted with cotton centerpieces.

“I understand you are trying to cater to certain people, but that is racist and stereotyping,” Weeks said. “I can understand why they are upset.”

Alondra Piña, a Hispanic sophomore, said Lowry is an advocate of minorities on campus, especially for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients. She attended the dinner for Hispanic students, which she said was “fine.”

“I think his intentions for the dinners were good, because he was trying to reach out to minority communities and support them in some form or way," Piña said.

“But that was just uncalled for.”

Lowry said he wanted the episode to power further progress on campus.

"There are bumps along the way. In this particular case, it's embarrassing that one of the bumps was at an event at my house," he said. "But It's out of that that there is the opportunity for greater understanding, greater, sensitivity, greater empathy. All those things come from a difficult moment."

Reach Adam Tamburin at 615-726-5986 and atamburin@tennessean.com. Follow him on Twitter @tamburintweets.