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DECLINING BLACK ENROLLMENT
The Numbers Don ’t Lie, But They Don ’t Tell The Whole Story Either
By Barbara Reynolds
Too often, even when there is a bit of
heaven shining through, some reports
can’t resist damning things to hell in a
handbasket.
For example, a new study by the
nonprofit Southern Educational Founda
tion warns of a declining black enroll
ment on mainstream college campuses in
the South.
That may be true, but what about the
numbers that say there has been a 43
percent increase in African-American
enrollment from 1976 to 1995, and that
today there are more blacks enrolled in
higher education than at any time in
history?
What about numbers from the United
Negro College Fund that say: “The nearly
1.4 million African-American - under
graduates represent 11 percent of all
undergraduates enrolled in the nation’s
colleges and universities, and this is an 18
percent increase in African-American
enrollment since 1990, compared with a 5
percent decrease for whites.”
The report from the Southern
Education Foundation says: “What
progress that has been made is halting and
this progress - modest and uneven as it
has been - is now threatened. The report
contends that in nine of the 19 states
studied, the proportion of college-age
blacks attending public universities has
declined in this decade. Also, the
percentage of blacks who are earning
bachelor’s degrees in southern colleges is
stagnant and is still far from matching the
rate of whites.”
That, of course, is certainly not
edifying, especially in a climate where in
Texas and California an anti-affirmative
action ethnic cleansing is underway. But
the good news is that, despite some white
colleges making it loud and clear they do
not want black and brown students in
their hallowed halls, and despite people of
color attending schools with the poorest
teachers, over-crowding and the least-
experienced teachers, blacks are still see
ing education as a way out and a way up.
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Yet what burns me up is that the report
seems to indicate there is something
distasteful about matriculating at black
colleges and universities. The report says
that the black students in the South who
do earn degrees are choosing to do so
outside of mainstream institutions. “In 13
of the 19 states, the study found that the
majority of black freshmen still
(emphasis added) attend historically
black colleges, not the flagship public
universities that the authors of the report
say often have the most academic
resources and prove the best access to
top-quality jobs after graduation,” wrote
the Washington Post.
Why would anyone suggest there is
something wrong with blacks still attend
ing black colleges? First of all, main
stream institutions are often racist, hostile
and negative to black students. Secondly
many black colleges have a long-esta
blished tradition of churning out black
leaders. It is little wonder significant
numbers of blacks still see historically
black colleges and universities as their
first choice.
As an alumna of two white colleges
and one black, and having taught at both
white and black colleges, I think it is
wrong for researchers to distribute an
attitude that assumes white universities
would be such a magnet for blacks. At
many white universities, blacks are
treated as dysfunctional tokens, have to
jump through hoops to prove they belong
in academia and have to plea for accept
ance into student organizations. And
often, they are steered away from fields
lucrative in status and monetary rewards.
At many black colleges, staff and
professors take a personal interest in
students, serve as models of hard work
and pass on values.
“It always amazes me how going to a
black college is so often cast as a
mistake,” says Cheryl Fields, executive
editor of Black Issues in Higher
Education in Fairfax, Va. “If we fall into
the trap of believing there is something
wrong if blacks still go to black colleges,
what are we saying?” Dr. Dhyana Ziegler
is interim vice president for academic
affairs at Florida A&M University, which
was recently voted College of The Year
by Time Magazine and Princeton Review.
She counters allegations that black
colleges don’t provide quality education
and competitive resources. “Despite our
not being allotted equal dollars that the
flagship institutions receive, we still
provide quality education. What good is it
if flagship institutions have the resources,
but don’t want to share them with black
students in scholarships and in other
areas?”
Considering the legacy of segregation
and today’s anti-affirmative climates, the
levels of achievement black colleges and
black students are reaching are worth
cheering.
VOLUME 5 ISSUE 25