Helping higher ed faculty practice equity

he higher education policy environment is squarely focused on equitable outcomes for black, Latino and Native American students. This is a necessary development if we are serious about preparing young people who can succeed in the workforce and uphold democratic values.

Colorado’s higher education master plan takes a big step in this direction. It calls for ensuring that the system reflects the state’s demographics and that gaps in earning postsecondary degrees among AfricanAmericans, Latinos and Native Americans are reduced.

Data from a recent report to the state legislature underscore the challenge: Four years after entering college, 32 percent of white students had earned at least one postsecondary credential compared to 14.5 percent of African-American students, 21.6 percent of American Indian or Alaskan Native students, and 20.9 percent of Hispanic students. The result is that, among working age adults in Colorado, about 53 percent of whites have at least a two-year degree while only 19 percent of Hispanic adults do, creating one of the biggest degree attainment gaps in the nation.

But this plan alone can’t increase college attainment among historically subordinated groups. That will happen only if institutions and faculty members acknowledge that what they have been doing is not working. They then must focus on individual actions that promote equity if we are to end up with outcomes that are more equitable.

The good news is that we are seeing progress in Colorado.

The math department at the Community College of Aurora (CCA), for example, has teamed up with the Center for Urban Education at the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education to challenge the status quo. Department chair James Gray has always been committed to student success. Equity, though, was not in his vocabulary. He acknowledges that he never considered looking at math data by race and ethnicity. But when he reviewed outcomes by course and instructor, broken down by race and ethnicity, he saw that some faculty members were successful and some were not. The gaps between non-whites and whites were as large as 35 percentage points. Today, he discusses these results with faculty individually to come up with strategies to reduce disparities.

Gray also realized that in 10 years as department chair, he had never hired an African-American faculty member. Upon reflection, he saw how his recruiting strategies put candidates of color at a disadvantage. He looked for candidates who fit the college’s status quo rather than “outliers” who might be more successful in diverse classrooms. He now asks job candidates how they would explain their course syllabus on day one of class in order to see if that candidate’s approach is conducive to an equity-focused classroom.

The state’s master plan sets the right goals. CCA’s success shows that they are realistic. But the plan will succeed for more Colorado students only if college administrators and faculty similarly reflect with candor and courage on what they are doing — and not doing — to promote more equitable outcomes.

Joseph A. Garcia is the former lieutenant governor of Colorado and incoming president of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. Estela Mara Bensimon is co-director of the Center for Urban Education at the University of Southern California.