Faculty Diversity Resource Guide

This is a presentation given at the recent GCC Rockin New Year Event. In this presentation, a number of icebreakers and activities are presented.

This long blog post written by a San Diego State University researcher whose expertise deals with improving the success of men of color, provides three key strategies for successful mentoring programs.

Less developed than Renee’s article but summarizes best practices and provided info on the type of support being provided at some colleges for men of color.

Short article on an educational blog by a Univ. of Pennsylvania professor talking about using white mentors with Black students.

The authors' goal is to personalize some concerns of diverse student populations and encourage faculty to intentionally incorporate cultural inclusion into their pedagogy and their courses. Here, they share Julian's story, which is a composite of perspectives shared by the 219 participants in the National Black Male College Achievement Study, many of whom described similar approaches to assuming cultural ownership for their learning in classrooms on thirty predominantly white campuses. In light of Julian's story and the responses of some of his peers, the authors emphasize that the onus needs to shift from students, who are expected to adjust to insensitive and monocultural classroom environments, to faculty, who need to change their teaching approaches to benefit an increasingly diverse array of students.

More than two-thirds of all African American males who begin college never finish. This and a legion of other discouraging facts about African American males are the usual headlines. Sharon Fries-Britt suggests that "the disproportionate focus on Black underachievement in the literature not only distorts the image of the community of Black collegians, it creates, perhaps unintentionally, a lower set of expectations for Black student achievement" (p. 556). In this article, the author introduces a group of African American men who have exceeded these expectations and exemplify what Americans hope for in all undergraduates: an enthusiastic commitment to learning, active engagement, citizenship, and the acquisition of practical competencies. By sharing their stories, the author attempts to expand the understanding of African American male collegians by providing insight into the experiences of high-achieving student leaders. Specifically, he shares the impetus for their active engagement outside of the classroom; highlights some of the outcomes that accrued as a result of their leadership in student organizations and participation in campus activities; and describes the ways in which the investment of their out-of-class time enhanced their overall experiences at predominantly white institutions (PWIs).

Higher education has been characterized as "one of the greatest hopes for intellectual and civic progress in this country. Yet for many Americans, however, it has been seen as part of the problem rather than the solution" (Boyer, 1997, p. 85). Some have acknowledged that higher education is a public good through which individual participation accrues benefits for the larger society (Institute for Higher Education Policy, 1998; Kezar, Chambers, & Burkhardt, 2005; Lewis & Hearn, 2003). Despite this, recent analyses have confirmed that too few African Americans are offered access to the socioeconomic advantages associated with college degree attainment (Harper, 2006; Perna et al., 2006). In some ways, the recurrent struggle for racial equity is surprising, given the number of policies that have been enacted to close college opportunity gaps between African Americans and their White counterparts at various junctures throughout the history of higher education. Though presumably for the best, Tyack and Cuban (1995) acknowledge that education policymaking does not always lead to sustainable progress. Much evidence exists to confirm this has been the case with policies created to increase access and ensure equity for African American students in higher education. Such efforts are described in this article. While various scholars have offered insights into the educational histories of African Americans (e.g., Allen & Jewell, 1995; Anderson, 1988; Gasman, 2007; Katz, 1969), comprehensive analyses of the underlying catalysts, low sustainability, and ultimate effects of policy efforts throughout the lifespan of higher education are scarce. This article seeks to fill that void. Policies that have affected participation and degree attainment rates for this population across various time periods are reviewed and discussed. The authors juxtapose historically noteworthy progressive steps toward access and equity with recent indicators of backward movement. Implications of these policy shifts are considered and critiqued at the end of the article. But first, the lens through which they analyzed these policies is described in the next section.

Black men's troubled status in higher education has garnered tremendous attention at national conferences, in the media, and in published scholarship over the past 15 years. As researchers make the complexities of the problem increasingly clear, educators, administrators, and policymakers alike have grappled with the question of what must be done to improve black male student success. No single initiative on its own will be enough to eradicate all the academic, financial, social, and political forces that collectively undermine black male student achievement. A problem as complex as this demands a complex solution. As such, it seems necessary to have a published set of standards for initiatives that are designed to improve black male student success in college. Presented in this article are eight standards that the authors collaboratively developed for the 2010 convening of the Arkansas African American Male Initiative (AAMI), a statewide consortium of community colleges and four-year institutions. These standards are based in part on findings from the National Black Male College Achievement Study (see Harper, 2012), as well as on insights from their engagement with dozens of black male initiatives across the country. The authors hope these standards will help institutions respond more effectively to one of the most underserved, stereotyped, and disengaged student populations on college and university campuses

It is difficult to assess the effectiveness of community college initiatives serving men of color when there is a lack of understanding of the nature of the programming taking place. The purpose of this study was to understand the funding streams, interventions, and objectives of programs serving men of color in the community college. This study was motivated by the belief that understanding common interventions, outcomes, and goals illuminates practitioners' perspectives of the personal and institutional barriers facing men of color and the strategies that should be employed to address these barriers. The researchers believe that the information presented in this analysis of minority male initiatives will serve as a reference for understanding common approaches taken in the field for serving men of color in community colleges.

A substantial body of scholarship on men of color in postsecondary education has emerged since the late 1990s. Yet, only recently have scholars begun to pursue empirical insights about the status of men of color who attend community colleges. In an effort to inform future research, this article reviews the published scholarship on student success for men of color in community colleges. The 5 domains of African American male student success in community colleges proposed by Wood and Harris (2012) served as a conceptual framework for reviewing and discussing the published scholarship. Following the review of scholarship, knowledge gaps and implications for future research on men of color in community colleges are offered.

This study examined background characteristics among Black males in public two-year and four-year institutions. This study sought to uncover whether significant differences existed among this sub-group by institutional type. Data were derived from 533 Black male students participating in the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study. The analysis was conducted using two stages of logit analysis. In the first stage, individual logistic regressions were conducted with eighteen variables. In the second stage, significant variables from the first stage were analyzed using appropriate controls. Findings from this study illustrated that Black males at two year colleges are markedly different from those attending four year institutions. Even when statistical controls were set in place, findings illustrated that while Black males share the same racial/ethnic and gender identity there are numerous distinctions between institutional types on background variables. Implications for future research are delineated.

"Open access" is a core mission component of the community college. Through this mission, public two-year colleges provide postsecondary opportunities to nearly all individuals desiring further education. However, access is not necessarily synonymous with success. Many students, including black males, have concerning levels of success, or the lack thereof, in college. In this article, the author discusses strategies that faculty can use to improve the success of black males in the community college. While grounded in research conducted in the community college, these strategies are applicable to faculty in higher education as a whole. Faculty members who practice these strategies will be taking an important step away from a "right to fail" philosophy to one that facilitates students' "right to succeed." As institutional agents, faculty members can illustrate an institution's commitment to students, thereby increasing the likelihood that students will succeed. Like all other students, black males want to succeed. They want to create a better future for themselves and their families. However, aiding students in achieving their academic and career goals requires a shared responsibility for student outcomes, one that shares the burden of student achievement between the institution and the student. Employing the strategies provided is one component of an institution's obligation to facilitate positive outcomes of black males in college.

The Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS) was created by Dr. Milton Bennett (1986, 1993, 2004, 2013) as a framework to explain how people experience and engage cultural difference. The DMIS is grounded theory; it is based on observations he made in both academic and corporate settings about how people become more competent intercultural communicators. Using concepts from constructivist psychology and communication theory, he organized these observations into positions along a continuum of increasing sensitivity to cultural difference.

Racial microaggressions are brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color. Suggestions regarding education and training and research in the helping professions are discussed.

For more information about some of the diversity events and offerings on campus, check out the Diversity Committee website.

3/2005 - Present

2013 - Six Months Ago

2007-Present

2003-Present

2008-Present