What started as an issue of office space for a student group has sparked an online debate about the role of race and diversity at Santa Clara University.

In their quest to get more space to accommodate an expanding number of cultural clubs, students of the campus's Multicultural Center (MCC) sought support from the student body last month when they felt their efforts with the administration had stalled.

But what they got instead was a barrage of anonymous chat-room postings criticizing the center for being exclusionary and for producing center T-shirts with a collage of smiley faces some thought are racist against whites.

``Personally, as a white student, I don't feel welcome in the MCC,'' one student wrote in response to the chat-room question, Should SCU make more space for the MCC? ``Those `See Me' shirts were so racist, with the white faces singled out and made to look expressionless next to the smiling faces of color. Any center that promotes that sort of bigotry should not be a part of this campus.''

Multicultural Center student leaders plan to hold a campuswide forum early next week to bring the issues out of an anonymous chat room and into the open. They said they were surprised at the vitriol on the postings, which started in late January and were still going strong last week, even as the center reached an agreement with the university on a remodeling plan for more space.

``We don't want to cause anything else, any more ruckus or stratify our university anymore between groups of people. We just want to promote awareness,'' said center director Manuel Perez, a senior from Sacramento. ``We hope people will see that we're honest and sincere in our efforts.''

But members also say the chat is symptomatic of a general feeling of discomfort on a campus that is nearly 60 percent white, 18 percent Asian, 13 percent Latino and 2 percent black.

``There's definitely an underlying hostility on campus,'' said sophomore Josh Crosson, a Multicultural Center member and spokesman for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance, which dealt last fall with hate e-mail sent to five gay students on campus.

The Multicultural Center, an umbrella group for nine cultural clubs representing Asian, Filipino, black, Chinese, Indian, Hawaiian, Latino, Vietnamese and Arab students, was established to provide resources and education for and about students of color on campus. The offices in the Shapell Lounge near the student union became too crowded when the center added another group this year for Arab students.

Perez acknowledged that the center has a reputation for being "cliquey" but stresses that it is open to everyone. Students and teachers say it provides an important resource. As for the T-shirts, the blank faces symbolize the notion of colorblindness, not white people, he said. The message on the shirt, ``See me,'' means it's OK to recognize people's differences.

Dean of Student Life Jeanne Rosenberg said Monday she was surprised by the chat comments and supports any efforts to help the campus create an environment in which everyone feels welcome.

``I don't know the motivation behind those responding to the chat room, but there is always an opportunity for the university to have discussions and dialogue about race,'' Rosenberger said.

Students around campus Monday said they had heard at least a little about the controversy. Some white students said they don't feel comfortable going to the center but did not want to give their names.

John Zazenski, a senior from Littleton, Colo., who calls himself ``as white as you can get,'' said he finds the center very comfortable and welcoming.

``I've heard it a lot. `Is the MCC too exclusionary, or is it that students are not willing to make the effort to go in?' '' Zazenski said. "I'm definitely on the side that students aren't making an effort to go in.''