Carol and George are right to single out diversity research for question. The InsideHigherEd.com article offers the usual “research shows” assertion, but doesn’t provide any particular studies that demonstrate the academic benefits of a diverse classroom. A close look at some of them, such as Gurin’s research, shows just how thin and unscientific–and ideologically-driven–it really is. Here’s a link to a digest of diversity research fully confident of its validity.