This paper emerged as a reaction to the results of the 1998 campus climate for diversity survey of a major research university in the southern U.S. The paper addresses the issue of diversity in higher education, and argues that the diversification of the faculty and student population can no longer be a peripheral activity, but must be reflective of the institution's commitment to diversity. The paper reviews some of the theoretical explanations for the slow progress in achieving diversity, while at the same time gives an example of good practice. In the final argument, the paper contends that with the inevitability of a more diverse population and workforce, the institutions of higher education do not only have a responsibility, but must assume leadership position on this crucial issue of preparing citizens for the world they now face.