CAROL’S SUMMARY:

In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled during Grutter v. Bollinger in favor of the University of Michigan Law School’s affirmative action argument that race-conscious admissions was justified by the educational benefits the diversity provided their students. New research on campus diversity, which goes beyond admissions to provide colleges with insight on how to structure their policies to maximize educational benefits for minority students, has sparked a national dialogue of divergent perspectives on this topic, which are featured in today’s article from the Chronicle of Higher Education. Following are excerpts from the article:

Jeffrey F. Milem, a professor of higher education at the University of Arizona, is quoted in the article: “You can’t just bring together a group of racially diverse people and assume that there will be benefits that come from that. That is an important first step, but it cannot be the only step colleges take.” Daryl G. Smith, a professor of education and psychology at Claremont Graduate University, agrees. She states that, “The conditions under which you bring people together matter.” Smith also says that many of the new studies “reveal key differences in how various racial and ethnic groups interact and show how colleges’ policies influence whether—and what—students learn from one another.”

James Sidanius, a professor of psychology and of African and African-American studies at Harvard University, acknowledges in his book, The Diversity Challenge: Social Identity and Intergroup Relations on the College Campus, that a long-term study of about 2,000 students at UCLA failed to confirm his belief that the university’s diversity and efforts to promote multiculturalism had a profound effect on students’ attitudes toward members of other racial and ethnic groups. In fact, some black students’ grades had suffered from their belief that they were admitted through race-conscious admissions policies, but also that involvement in racially or ethnically oriented campus groups appeared to hurt students’ ability to relate to peers from other racial and ethnic backgrounds. Rather than being challenged by advocates for minority students, the study has been praised by several as solid.

Ms. Darrell Smith, of the Claremont Graduate University, says, “The issue in this research should not be to demonstrate that we want diversity or don’t want diversity. The issue today should be: How do we go about building a healthy democracy in our institutions, building pluralistic communities that work?”

ARTICLE:

The Chronicle of Higher Education
January 31, 2010
New Research Complicates Discussions of Campus Diversity—in a Good Way
By Peter Schmidt

A new wave of research on campus diversity holds the promise of improving how colleges serve students of different hues. On the fundamental question of whether racial and ethnic diversity produces educational benefits, the latest studies’ bottom line is: Sometimes. With the right mix of students. If handled delicately.

The increased nuance and complexity of the recent research is seen as a byproduct of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2003 Grutter v. Bollinger ruling, in which a slim majority accepted the University of Michigan Law School’s argument that the educational benefits arising from campus diversity justified the use of race-conscious admissions.

In putting to rest courtroom debates over the constitutionality of such policies, the Grutter decision left proponents of affirmative action feeling freer to study—and publicly acknowledge—shortcomings in colleges’ efforts to promote diversity. Colleges have interpreted the ruling as requiring them to demonstrate how race-conscious admissions policies advance their missions. That, in turn, has created demand for research on the nuts and bolts of using diversity to improve education.

To view this entire article visit www.chronicle.com

CAROL’S SUMMARY:

President Obama’s first formal State of the Union address last night focused on the nation’s economy, and specifically, helping make college more affordable. “In the 21st century, one of the best antipoverty programs is a world-class education,” he said, calling for a $10,000 tax credit to families for four years of college, as well as an increase in Pell Grants. But even with financial aid, many students have trouble affording the basic fees. According to the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, median family income increase by nearly 150 percent during the last 25 years, only to have college tuition and fees skyrocket by 439 percent during the same time period.

According to the Chronicle of Higher Education article below, Obama “urged Congress to finish legislation that would restructure federal student lending and proposed a more lenient loan-forgiveness program for graduates with federally subsidized student loans.” He will ask Congress to boost federal spending on education by as much as $4 billion in the coming 2011 budget, Education Secretary Arnie Duncan said earlier in the day. Of that total, $3 billion will go toward elementary and secondary education and $1 billion will be for higher education.

In the U.S., 1 out of every 4 college students drop out or stop out (postpone their education and enroll again later). Closely linked to college drop-out rates are the numbers of high school students who quit school. In a May 2009 report by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, and the Alternative Schools Network in Chicago, Illinois, approximately 600,000 students dropped out in 2008. If they had stayed in school and graduated, they would have generated over $1 billion in state and local taxes in just one year of their working lives. Consequently, addressing our nation’s drop out crisis is one antidote to the high cost of college. Without correcting the patterns of underachievement that often begin in middle school, the U.S. high school drop-out crisis will persist, making college even more unattainable.

What kinds of supportive strategies can we put in place at the middle school and high school levels to help students prepare for college and career success?

How can we boost students’ intrinsic motivation to see themselves as learners who have the ability to achieve academically?

How can we better serve students so that they excel in their areas of strength and interest while also providing opportunities to improve in areas of learning deficiencies?

ARTICLE:

The Chronicle of Higher Education
January 28, 2010
In a Speech Focused on the Economy, Obama Calls for Cutting College Costs
By Libby Nelson
Washington

In his first formal State of the Union address on Wednesday night, President Obama focused on the nation’s economic problems but also zeroed in on several issues of concern to higher education, including college costs.

He urged Congress to finish legislation that would restructure federal student lending and proposed a more lenient loan-forgiveness program for graduates with federally subsidized student loans.

To view this entire article visit www.chronicle.com

CAROL’S SUMMARY:

There are more men than women ages 18-24 in the USA — 15 million vs. 14.2 million, according to a Census Bureau estimate last year. But nationally, the male/female ratio on campus today is 43/57, a reversal from the late 1960s and well beyond the nearly even splits of the mid-1970s. The National Center for Education reports the number of females attending college in 2004 surpassed males by about 200,000 nationwide. According to a new study, “Gender Equity in Higher Education: 2010” by the American Council on Education, that gap has remained steady, however, the enrollment disparity between Hispanic men and women has continued to increase with enrollment of undergraduate Hispanic men ages 24 or younger dropping from 45 percent to 42 percent between 1999 and 2007, according to this same study. The percentage of undergraduates at community and four-year colleges who were male hovered between 42 percent and 44 percent from the 1995-1996 academic year to 2007-2008, the last year for which data was available, says the report. Fewer than half of foreign-born Hispanic men who live in the United States complete high school.

Jacqueline E. King, assistant vice president for policy analysis at the council and author of the report, added, “There has been some anecdotal evidence coming in from community colleges saying that since the recession, they’ve seen enrollment of non-traditional-aged men expanding pretty rapidly. They’ve been laid off or they’re worried about being laid off, so the job market is pushing them to upgrade.” King also found that 68 percent of college enrollees from low-income families were female; only 31 percent were male.

How can we do a better job getting Latin males into the college pipeline starting in middle and secondary schools?

What pedagogical approaches might need to be put in place that honor the different learning preferences between boys and girls?

How can we draw more men to the teaching profession who in turn become role models for boys?

ARTICLE:

The Chronicle of Higher Education
January 26, 2010
Female Undergraduates Continue to Outnumber Men, but Gap Holds Steady
By Andrea Fuller

The gender gap in undergraduate enrollment appears to have stopped widening for most groups, according to a report being released on Tuesday by the American Council on Education.

The percentage of undergraduates at community and four-year colleges who were male hovered between 42 percent and 44 percent from the 1995-1996 academic year to 2007-2008, the last year for which data was available, says the report, “Gender Equity in Higher Education: 2010.” Among undergraduates who were black or age 25 and older, even smaller proportions were male, but the ratio of women to men in those groups was relatively stable over that same time frame.

To view this entire article visit www.chronicle.com