Running head: CHALLENGES FACING AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES IN HIGHER

EDUCATION 1

Challenges Facing African American Males in Higher Education

Danielle Pulliam

The University of Memphis

CHALLENGES FACING AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES IN HIGHER EDUCATION 2

Abstract
This paper aims to explore a variety of information regarding the ubiquitous amount of

challenges facing African American males (AAM) within the realm of higher education in both

the student and faculty population. Beginning in K-12 African American males have proven to be

underprepared, underrepresented and less likely to graduate in comparison to their non-black

counter parts at public colleges and universities. This paper examines critical research regarding

the background and experiences of African American males in various higher education settings

such as historically black colleges (HBCU), predominantly white institutions (PWI), and within

intercollegiate athletics (NCAA). Throughout this paper, it will highlight key factors that have

been proven to strongly correlate to the overall success of AAM students in each of these

previously stated higher education settings. Furthermore, by exploring Astins Student

Involvement Theory (SIT) and the Critical Race Theory (CRT), the research presented will offer

possible implications and future research suggestions in an effort to change the perception of

AAM students in higher education and bring awareness to the graduation gap amongst this

population and their peers.

Keywords: African American Males, Student Involvement Theory, Critical Race Theory,
National Collegiate Athletic Association
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Challenges Facing African American Males in Higher Education

For many years, studies have highlighted the overwhelming statistics that show African

American males are underperforming and graduating at a much lower rate than any other racial

group at public colleges and universities. Two thirds of Black undergraduate men who start at

public colleges and universities do not graduate within six years (Harris & Harper, 2012, p. 1).

This research paper will look specifically at three different college environments in which black

males can be found and study how their different experiences within each effects how successful

they are within higher education.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities

An ongoing debate amongst researchers and student affairs professionals is the

differences in how an HBCU college environment affects the overall success of an AAM versus

a PWI college environment. HBCUs aim to teach their students about the history of blacks in

higher education and place an emphasis on serving their black student population by giving them

a family like atmosphere in which they can excel in. Reportedly, black students who attend

HBCUs have stronger academic self-concepts, are more satisfied with their college experience,

and are engaged at higher levels than their same race counterparts at PWIs ("Factors critical to

the access and success of black men in postsecondary education," n.d.). Although this was found

to be true, on a majority of HBCU campuses black men are still underrepresented compared to

black women and are graduating at a much lower rate than black women. Researchers have

attributed the low retention rates to a lack of initiative to seek help, the absence of financial aid,

and familial challenges ("Factors critical to the access and success of black men in postsecondary

education," n.d.). In contrast, research has found that although HBCUs provide a welcoming
CHALLENGES FACING AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES IN HIGHER EDUCATION 4

environment for black males it also provides an unwelcoming environment for homosexual black

males. Not only do these men experience homophobia, but also isolation and identity challenges

(Scott, Taylor, & Palmer, 2013).

Predominantly White Institutions

Numerous studies have been conducted of the unwelcoming campus environment that

serves black male students at predominantly white institutions. Black males have reported poor

faculty relationships, racist experiences, and feelings of alienation when navigating PWI

campuses. In order to compensate, and figuratively speaking survive these campus climates,

black males reported having to have a prove them wrong attitude. Black males at PWIs use

influences such as peer and familial support as well as religion, as vital resources to help them

overcome the very statistics that say they shouldnt be there and cant achieve academic success

in postsecondary education (Kim & Hargrove, 2013).

Research has also pointed to the lack of minority male faculty as another barrier to

academic success for black male students. Culturally relevant pedagogy promotes academic

engagement because the instructor is incorporating aspects of the students culture into their

teaching and instructional practices (Scott, Taylor, & Palmer, 2013, p. 290). Not only does

increasing the number of minority male faculty help to encourage academic engagement, but it

also helps to place black males on an equal playing field as their peers from the very beginning.

Research has substantiated that at many PWIs faculty members have been notorious of having

preconceived notions regarding black male students and their low expectations for educational

success ("Factors critical to the access and success of black men in postsecondary education,"

n.d.,).
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National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA has seven core values that the association aims to achieve. The association

through its member institutions, conferences and national office staff shares a belief in and

commitment to: the collegiate model of athletics in which students participate as an avocation,

balancing their academic, social and athletic experiences ("NCAA core values | NCAA.org -

The official site of the NCAA," n.d.). Yet, in the two largest revenue generating sports of football

and basketball black males, who make up 55% of the team members, are graduating at the lowest

rates compared to student athletes overall (Harris & Harper, 2012, p. 4). According to an annual

report by The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports, in 2011, white male basketball

student-athletes on tournament bound teams graduate at the rate of 91 percent versus only 59

percent of African-American male basketball student athletes (Lapchick, 2011, p. 2).

Not only are these student athletes graduating at much lower rates than their counterparts, but

they are also exiting college underprepared with a lack of employer attractive job experiences

and skills.

Many would argue that instead of focusing on academics and career preparation, student

athletes in these prospective sports (mens basketball and football) are giving their full attention

to preparing for their professional athletics career. The dream career that many college coaches

solicit and promote their professional connections as a selling point in the recruiting process to

prospective student athletes. Athletes often have incredibly unrealistic perceptions of their

professional prospects, said the NCAA president, Mark Emmert. The reality is, only 1.2 percent
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of mens basketball student athletes are drafted to play professional basketball and only 1.6% of

football student athletes are drafted to play for the National Football League (NFL) (New, 2015).

Given the reality that statistically theres a very slim chance that many student athletes

will go on to earn millions of dollars playing professionally, a dichotomy in college athletics lies

in the very lenient continuing eligibility requirements for student athletes; requirements so

miniscule that student athletes achieving these low expectations truthfully would not even be

considered for admission into a graduate program post-graduation. Per NCAA, at the end of a

student athletes freshmen year they must be maintaining a cumulative GPA of at least 1.8. At the

end of sophomore year a student athlete must have at least a 1.9 cumulative GPA and at least a

2.0 cumulative GPA at the end of their junior and senior year. The NCAA also uses the Academic

Progress Rate (APR) to measure a teams retention and eligibility. To remain eligible teams must

have an average APR score of 930, which is equivalent to a team graduating nearly half of their

players (New, 2015).

Factors for Success: Student Involvement & Mentoring

Two factors that were found to help promote black student success is the amount of

campus involvement that the student engages in and mentoring. This involvement could be

through student organizations, fraternities/sororities, various initiatives, or community service

etc. It is because of active participation in these types of student engagement activities that

students have reported that the primary benefits is the sense of belonging on campus they feel.

Researcher Shaun Harper explained, active engagement inside and outside of the classroom

provided opportunities for these students to establish meaningful relationships with faculty and

campus administrators, such as the university president, deans of students, and provost
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("Factors critical to the access and success of black men in postsecondary education," n.d., p.

68). By becoming involved in various facets on campus students will have the opportunity to

voice their opinions, help create social change, and take on leadership positions that could serve

as motivating factors for students to also achieve academic success.

Not only is student involvement imperative for black male student athletes but so is the

presence of a mentor. Mentors can not only serve as an option for advice, but also as someone

that can hold their students accountable. These mentors could be notable alumni (specifically

black males who graduated college), professors on campus, or coaches etc. Researchers found

that many black male students have mentors, but they are people off campus normally in a

religious setting. Although this could be very beneficial as well, it is important to note that on

campus mentors can play a big role because of the direct access that students have to utilize and

confide in these mentors.

Financial Support

80 percent of black male undergraduates in 2012 applied for federal financial aid,

compared to 63% of white male undergraduates ("Advancing success for black men in college,"

2014). Financial support plays a major role in all students decisions to remain enrolled in

college courses or even to attend an institution at all. In order to choose a more cost effective

option many minority students choose to attend community colleges or HBCUs simply because

it is normally seen as a less expensive choice ("Factors critical to the access and success of black

men in postsecondary education," n.d.). Financial aid is one of the biggest factors for success for

black students in higher education. Gifts in the form of scholarships and grants have been linked

to higher rates of persistence and degree attainment for black students ("Factors critical to the
CHALLENGES FACING AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES IN HIGHER EDUCATION 8

access and success of black men in postsecondary education," n.d., p. 76). Though financial aid

has proven to provide support to students seeking postsecondary education, studies have shown

that loans specifically are utilized amongst white students in order to provide support ("Factors

critical to the access and success of black men in postsecondary education," n.d.). Instead of

taking out student loans black male students are more likely to try to supplement their income by

working numerous hours throughout the school year whether through on campus or off campus

jobs. Studies show that in 2012 black male undergraduates worked on average more than forty

hours per week (Advancing success for black men in college, 2014)

Implications and Practice for Student Affairs Professionals

Increasing the overall academic success for black males in education has always been a

challenge for educators. By fourth grade black males attending large city schools were over

three times less likely to be proficient at reading and math than white children (Cooper, 2016, p.

268). Although statistics seem to focus on the negative aspects of black males in higher

education it is important to note that not all black males are underachieving in higher education.

Institutions that are labeled as Generating Ethnic Minority Success (GEMS) have both higher

retention and graduation rates of their minority student population than the average percentage of

most PWIs. The major challenge confronting U.S. higher education is how best to replicate and

expand examples of black student college success (Kim & Hargrove, 2013, p. 301).

The effort to provide efficient and effective educational support and promote high

standards of excellence in education must be something taught to black male students at a young

age. Although this particular paper is centered on students entering higher education, it must be

noted that TRIO programs prior to attending an institution are both beneficial and necessary to
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the success of black males. TRIO programs help inform students about financial aid, tutoring,

access to higher education, and vital support services that are available to students. Researchers

have found that TRIO programs have played a vital role in encouraging college access as well as

academic success for low-income minorities ("Factors critical to the access and success of black

men in postsecondary education," n.d.). Placing an importance on college readiness at a young

age helps to promote a culture that not only encourages, but expects black males to attend public

colleges and universities as a part of their transition into becoming an adult post high school

graduation.

One recommendation would be to create an advocacy group on college campuses for

black male students. This group could be composed of numerous people such as faculty

members, professors, administrators, and minority student organization leaders. The goal of this

advocacy group should be to help black males foster relationships with various groups on

campus and to have a place to voice concerns, challenges, and experiences on campus. This

advocacy group could serve as a team to not only support black male students but also to help

hold them accountable both during their college experience and after.

The second recommendation to increase overall academic success among black male

students is to place an emphasis on cultivating change within college athletics. If athletic

departments are held responsible for not preparing all of their student athletes for success both on

the field and in the classroom we will begin to see dramatic changes. Coaches in the largest

revenue generating sports need to be accountable for their teams academic achievement more so

than their athletic achievements while competing at their respective institutions.

In order to generate more positive academic results, the NCAA should motivate coaches

and student athletes by increasing the necessary grade point average for eligibility, decreasing the
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amount of compensation that coaches receive for athletic achievements and increasing the

compensation for academic achievements, and placing a larger importance on initial eligibility

requirements for prospective student athletes. Theres this inherent logical contradiction with

these policies where a coach is telling an athlete one thing, but being rewarded for another.

Richard Southall, director of the College Sports Research Institute says this is the very reason

why many coaches dont like the idea of restructuring coaching contracts to include less bonuses

for athletic accomplishments. (New, 2015). By implementing these three adjustments it will not

only place an emphasis on achieving academic excellence for current administrators and student

athletes but also would create higher expectations for the pipeline of prospective student athletes

anticipating to play collegiate athletics.

Future Research

As discussed the research and statistics brought forth throughout this paper aimed to shed

light on black males operating within different campus environments in higher education. The

majority of information here as in most articles highlights black males who are not achieving

educational success. As presented earlier the challenge for higher education, public colleges, and

universities is to research and replicate institutions that are producing average or above average

retention and graduation rates of their black male students. If the majority of research and studies

are conducted on black males who arent achieving educational success, then we will never be

able to identify and assess the black males who are achieving educational success within higher

education.

Despite the statistics presented, there is another set of statistics that show a select group

of black males who are graduating college and using their experiences and education to transition

into the workforce. Although research regarding these statistics is scarce and incredibly difficult
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to find, I believe that this information could be the pivotal research that student affairs

professional need to turn the corner. This information could provide a blueprint to understanding

college educated, successful black men who have navigated their way through both HBCUs and

PWIs.

Second, we discussed the prove them wrong mentality. A mentality that a majority of

black male students at PWIs reported adopting in order to help motivate them in their pursuit for

educational success. A limitation to this research would be that it lacks in information regarding

the ramifications of adopting this particular attitude. Such ramifications for students who use this

mechanism could be challenges building relationships with other races after graduation within a

job setting (Kim & Hargrove, 2013).

Conclusion

In conclusion the topic of challenges facing African American male students in higher

education is a very broad but important topic. Black males in higher education for years have not

achieved the same academic success, graduation rates, or college experiences in comparison to

any other gender or race on college campuses. The statistics are alarming and overwhelming, yet

student affairs professionals, administrators, and researchers have not found a way to replicate

the black males who are achieving success and graduating with a college degree. By

implementing an advocacy group for this population of students, helping them become aware of

opportunities to get involved, and making sure they are educated about the various financial

support they can utilize I believe that this population has the opportunity to make strides in

higher education and can begin taking ownership of their experiences within all college

environments. In closing, the African American culture has a phrase that says it takes a village
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to teach a child. In order to see a large change, it will take everyone on college campuses

coming together to evoke change.

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