America has a long and grim history of racism. And while the country has made progress in eradicating racism—for example, through the historic March on Washington in 1963 and the more recent Black Lives Matter movement—disparities persist for racial and ethnic minorities.

One place where racial and ethnic minority groups remain underrepresented is in the workplace, especially in high-level positions. This is apparent in higher education: In 2022 (the most recent data available), 65.3% of faculty members were White. At the same time, Latino/Latina, Black, and Asian American faculty made up just 5.8%, 5.9%, and 11.4%, respectively, of professors, instructors, and lecturers, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Racial and ethnic minorities are even rarer in academic leadership roles—even though people of color make up a larger share of postsecondary students than ever before in history. However, diversity—specifically in academic leadership—is essential for the effective management of the institution and the ability to relate to and educate the student body.

First Black College Student and President

A timeline of key events, presented by the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, begins in 1799 when John Chavis—a Presbyterian minister and teacher—became the first Black student to attend an American college. (Chavis was a student at what is now Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.) It wasn’t until 24 years later that Alexander Lucius Twilight became the first known Black American to graduate from college, earning a bachelor's degree from Middlebury College in Vermont. By 1900, more than 2,000 Black Americans had earned college degrees. Around 390 of these were earned from White institutions.

Today, education is seen as the most direct path to financial success. Yet, while the student population has become more diverse, faculty have remained predominantly White.

Growth is equally slow for Black representation in academic leadership. Henry Martin Freeman became the first Black college president in 1856 when he was hired at Avery College. In 1874, Patrick Francis Healy became the first Black academic named president of a predominantly White school, Georgetown University. It took nearly a century for Clifton R. Wharton Jr. to become the second Black president of a mostly White university, Michigan State University, in 1969.

Minorities Are Underrepresented in Full-Time F💫acu🦂lty Positions

According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data, Black people make up about 13.7% of the country. Yet a 2024 report from executive recruiting firm Crist Kolder Associates found only 11 Black chief executive officers (CEOs) of S&P 500 and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Fortune 500 companies in 2024—down from 12 in 2023, but up from eight in 2022. And while Latino/Latina people represent the nation's largest (19.1%) racial or ethnic minority group, just 26 were CEOs at this level.

The higher education industry is not much better. According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, full-time Latino/Latina, Black, and Asian American faculty made up just 6%, 5%, and 10%, respectively, of professors, instructors, and lecturers in 2022 (the most recent data available). White academics comprised the largest portion of all positions and represented 65% of full-time faculty.

White people also hold the most administrative positions in higher education. In 2022, more than 72% of college presidents were White, with people of color comprising just 28% of top leadership roles.

Racial Wage Gaps in Higher Education

Even in📖 today’s incඣreasingly diverse workforce, equal pay for equal work is not a reality for most people of color.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, full-time workers had median weekly earnings of $1,192 in the fourth quarter of 2024. However, when broken down by race/ethnicity, the results show glaring disparities. Here's what each group earned:

• Asian American: $1,507
• White: $1,207
• Black: $1,040
• Latino/Latina: $920

There is a similar pattern among higher education administrators. White, Latino/Latina, and Black administrators are paid less than Asian American administrators, who comprise 3.6% of these positions and earn significantly more than their Latino/Latina, White, and Black counterparts.

Racial Minority Women

Women who are members of racial minority groups are the least represented and often the lowest paid segment of the overall workforce and the higher education industry. This group is susceptible to greater bias because of the intersectionality of their identities. For example, ꦯwomen face discrimination in the workplace, as do Black people, so a Black woman is very li♒kely to experience bias based on both of these identity categories.

By gender, median weekly earnings for Black men were $1,118—84.6% of the median for White men ($1,243). Meanwhile, with median earnings of $1,001, Latino men earned 75.8% of the median for White men. The difference was slightly less extreme among women, as Black women's median earnings were $978—or 89.4% of the median for White women. Latinas earned $844, or 77.1% of those for White women. The median earnings of Asian American men ($1,684) and women ($1,367) were higher than their White peers.

The pay equity for professionals overall improved for women, with Black women seeing the greatest improvement from 2016-2017 to 2023-2024. Nonetheless, women of all races/ethnicities in higher education earn less than White men who hold the same position. And institutions that have the most resources pay women of all races the least compared to men of the same race.

Racial Gaps Between Faculty and Students

In recent years, colleges and universities began to recognize the importance of a diverse student body and have made some progress. But as they have moved toward that goal, staff and administrations remain largely White. A 2024 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that although college faculties had become more racially diverse over the past 20 years, in 2021, only 8% of university teachers were Black, compared to 12% of Black students on campuses. One barrier exposed by the GAO report is delays in processing discrimination complaints through either the Department of Education or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The racial gap narrowed slightly over the two decades from 1997 to 2017 when looking at non-White people as a whole. In 1997, minority groups made up 28% of students and 14% of faculty. However, Black and Latino/Latina representation in faculty barely moved. Black representation increased from 5% to 6%, and Latino/Latina grew from 3% to 5%.

Challenges to Moving Forward

In two rulings in 2023 the Supreme Court held that race-based affirmative action admission policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina were unconstitutional because they went against the Equal Protections Clause of the 14th Amendment. As a result of these rulings, early data suggest that Black, Latino/Latina, and indigenous student representation has declined in U.S. colleges. For example, enrollment at MIT of first-year students in these minority groups dropped 14% over the previous year.

In addition, in President Trump's second term in office, he has vowed to stamp out diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, which he has labeled as an example of “immense public waste and shameful discrimination.” One of his executive orders has banned DEI offices and initiatives in the federal workforce; another ended affirmative action enforcement for federal contractors relating to women and minorities.

Given the Supreme Court's rulings and the broad nature of these executive orders, increasing diversity in university student bodies and among faculty now appear to be facing unprecedented headwinds.

The Bottom Line

Having diverse leadership in higher education is important for the institution and the student body. Having minority representation in faculty, administration, and staff improves student engagement and retention, as well as classroom discussions, and helps prepare students for the workforce. Racial gaps will not improve overnight, but there are steps that 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:colleges and universities can take to help speed up the process:

• Evaluate existing pay and representation to identify any gaps.
• Ensure fair market wages and competitive salaries when competing for minority candidates.
• Examine employee turnover, age, and experience of existing minority employees to identify those who can potentially move up the career track.

Higher education has come a long way since segregation and all-male colleges. Taking steps today wi🦂ll help inst𓆏itutions narrow the pay and representation gaps, creating a more equitable environment for all students, faculty, staff, and administrators.