The differences between men and women aren’t all that difficult to spot. Still, minority women far outnumber minority men in post-graduate degree programs – four to one on some U.S. campuses. So why do most colleges take the same approach with both sexes when it comes to recruiting and retaining minorities in post-graduate programs?
Two experts on minority enrollment offered their insights at a panel discussion Saturday at The Compact for Faculty Diversity’s 15th Annual Institute on Teaching and Mentoring. More than 1,000 guests attended the four-day conference in Tampa, Fla. It is the nations’ largest annual gathering of minority doctorate holders.
“Men of Color in the Academy: Helping Them Succeed” was among many panel sessions offered at this year’s event, which was hosted by the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), based in Atlanta, Ga., and the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, based in Boulder, Co.
Panelist Michael Cuyjet, an associate professor of educational and counseling psychology at the University of Louisville, Ky., transformed his study into a book, “African-American Men in College.”
His research found minority women were more likely than minority men to interact with faculty and spend out-of-class time in the library or with student organizations. Women also tended to hold more officer positions in Black student organizations.
Faculty and administrators need to know where minority males go after class and reach out to them there, he said.
“If the brothers are hanging in the gym, you go to the gym,” Cuyjet said. “… A lot of young men come onto campus and assume they will not do well. We have to let these young men know they matter to these institutions.”
Several factors undermine the success of minority male students, including under preparedness for college coursework and culture clash. But it doesn’t have to be that way, said LeManuel Bitsoi, director of minority training at Harvard University.
