There is a disturbing study by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution which found that there is a chronic problem at the nation’s historically black colleges and universities with shockingly low graduation rates. The newspaper found that the six-year graduation rates at 20 schools were 20 percent or lower in 2015. Some of the schools showed a rate of only five percent — raising serious questions over not just the performance of these schools but the treatment of their students.
While Spelman College in Atlanta shows a 76 percent graduation rate, other schools have shocking rates even after six years. These include Arkansas Baptist College (5%); Virginia University of Lynchburg (5%); Harris-Stow State University (7%); Concordia College Alabama (10%); Southwestern Christian College (10%); Texas College (13%); Paul Quinn College (13%); and Southern University New Orleans (14%). Even Morehouse College struggles with 51% (down from 57% in 2010).
These figures would suggest that some of these schools have student bodies where 95 percent of the students will not receive a degree after six years of work.
So, what are the enrollment criteria for these colleges?
Is it just being black?
These HBCU are largely anachronisms. One needs to accept the reality of Black kids being able to attend the best colleges into which they are admitted along with the question of who- and why, anyone would choose schools of such poor quality and with so little diversity amongst the student body? The market of decent students is relatively small. To the extent a market still exists for these schools it is a small and shrinking one. The fact even the alleged best of the HBCU present such poor numbers is telling.
HBCU should either be consolidated into about half the number of schools or transformed en toto into normal state universities. This would often mean a consolidation which has presented historical problems as students/alum want to preserve the legacy of HBCU’s names (the Savannah State and Armstrong State problem). Note, however, it is important to be candid about the numbers. A 10% or 25% graduation rate is embarrassing but in Georgia the graduation rates at West Georgia and Georgia Southern (or for that matter Georgia State) are also low. There are many colleges which are not HBCU and show embarrassingly low graduation rates.
Wait – SIX year graduation rates? You give ’em an extra two years and 20% (or worse!) is the best they can muster?
Here’s an idea. How ’bout some DIVERSITY in those schools! You know, because the Blue Team thinks it works so well in every other aspect of society, right?
Or would DIVERSITY in this case be rac*st?
Perhaps the course below should be required for all the students (pretty much) at these campuses:
https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2015/07/10/419202925/the-writing-assignment-that-changes-lives
“Overall, the “self-authoring” students greatly improved the number of credits earned and their likelihood of staying in school. And after two years, ethnic and gender-group differences in performance among the students had all but disappeared.”
“She says you often see at-risk students engage in self-defeating behavior “to save face.”
“If you aren’t sure you belong in college, and you don’t hand in that paper,” she explains, “you can say to yourself, ‘That’s because I didn’t do the work, not because I don’t belong here.’ “”
Yes, I live just 10 miles from downtown Moscow!
aHA. I knew it, I just knew it.😊