Diversity in the News

Promoting Diversity: An Important Responsibility of Higher Ed

Dawn Zawko — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 14:44:00 +0000

By Michael Rao, President
Central Michigan University
Posted January 31, 2008 on Solutions for Our Future website

We face challenging times in America. Fundamentally, we have the incredible charge of figuring out how we as a people-in our own nation and around the world-will live together without harming or intimidating each other simply because we're different.

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Native American Heritage Month 2007 Highlights

Jerry — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 16:44:00 +0000

Megan Tucker performs at the First Nations Art Bazaar and Dance Demonstration which wrapped up Native American Heritage Month activities at Northern Michigan University on Dec. 1. This event featured regional Native American artisans and dancers and was the first of its kind sponsored by the Native American Student Association.

Native American Heritage Month highlights

In Professor's Model, Diversity = Productivity

Rae — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 15:12:00 +0000

By Claudia Dreifus, The New York Times,
January 8, 2008

In the long-running debate on affirmative action, Scott E. Page, a professor of complex systems, political science and economics at the University of Michigan, is a fresh voice.

His recently published book, "The Difference: How the Power of Diversity Creates Better Groups, Firms, Schools and Societies" (Princeton University Press), uses mathematical modeling and case studies to show how variety in staffing produces organizational strength.

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Tests of ER trainees find signs of race bias in care

Vicki — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 15:44:00 +0000

Study seeks root of known disparity

By Stephen Smith, Globe Staff, July 20, 2007

Deeply imbedded attitudes about race influence the way doctors care for their African- American patients, according to a Harvard study that for the first time details how unconscious bias contributes to inferior care. More...

Rae — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 14:12:00 +0000

"News from the Pathways to College Network" (July, 2006) provides a college access and success "Summer Reading List" of recent publications offering useful information and perspectives on the college transitions and success of underserved youth.

JBHE: Latest News for 7/27/06. Includes: "Business Is By Far the Most Popular Major for African-American College Graduates" and "Outreach Programs for College-Bound Black Students in California Fall Victim to Governor Schwarzenegger's Budget Axe."

Rae — Fri, 30 Jun 2006 13:23:00 +0000

National College Access Program Directory, an online database of college access programs serving students across the United States. College access programs are programs that help students prepare for or gain access to postsecondary opportunities. The directory can be searched by program name; by state, region, or zip code; by population served; and by services offered. The expanded Directory is a joint effort of the National College Access Network and the Pathways to College Network.

JBHE: Latest News for 6/29/06. Includes: "The Very Good News on Black Enrollments in Higher Education" and "The Legal Battle Over the So-Called Michigan Civil Rights Initiative Continues."

Rae — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 15:31:00 +0000

Rising to the Challenge: Are High School Graduates Prepared for College and Work? (press release. poll report ) A poll conducted by Achieve, Inc. as part of their American Diploma Project to help states define and align high school exit standards and assessments with college entrance standards and assessments.

Achieve has just released a new publication detailing some of their work and findings:

"Closing The Expectations Gap 2006: An Annual 50-State Progress Report on the Alignment of High School Policies with the Demands of College and Work" (793kb pdf)

In February 2005, Achieve and the National Governors Association sponsored a National Education Summit on High Schools at which governors from 45 states, business leaders and education officials addressed the preparation gap that leaves many high school graduates unprepared for success in college and the workplace. In an effort to monitor state progress toward the Summit goals, Achieve surveyed all 50 states in December 2005 on a key subset of the policies from the Summit action agenda - those focused on aligning high school academic standards, course requirements, assessments, and data and accountability systems with postsecondary and workplace expectations. In most states there is a large gap between what high schools expect and what colleges and employers demand, an expectations gap. This report examines progress states are making in closing the gap.

"Closing the Expectations Gap 2006" is a followup to Achieve's 2004 study:

"The Expectations Gap: A 50-State Review of High School Graduation Requirements" (220kb pdf)

This study from The American Diploma Project (ADP) - created by Achieve, The Education Trust and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation - found that shockingly few of the nation's high school students gain the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in college and the workforce. In this new report, Achieve provides one important explanation for this phenomenon: No state requires its graduates to take the courses that reflect the real-world demands of work and postsecondary education. This report looks at graduation requirements and provides policy recommendations on how states should "ratchet up" their expectations.

JBHE: Latest News for 4/6/06.

Includes: "Ban on Race-Sensitive Admissions Continues to Cause Major Damage to Black Enrollments at State-Operated Law Schools in California"

Rae — Fri, 17 Mar 2006 22:11:00 +0000

"Equity scorecard seeks to narrow diversity gaps" by Michael Rogers, in the Wednesday, March 08, 2006 issue of the Advance Titan.

"Rich Student, Poor Student" by Scott Jaschik, in the March 16, 2006 issue of Inside Higher Ed.

Weekly Bulletins from The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education:

JBHE: Latest News for 3/16/06. Includes: "Eight Highly Selective Colleges Plan to Enroll 1,100 Low-Income Community College Transfer Students Over the Next Four Years"

JBHE: Latest News for 3/9/06. Includes: "High-Ranking Institutions With Low Black Student Graduation Rates"

JBHE: Latest News for 3/2/06. Includes: "Colleges and Universities With the Nation's Highest Black Student Graduation Rates"