Few US College Graduates Feel Their Schools Fully Investigate Discrimination
2020-08-09
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1In the United States, only about one-fourth of college graduates strongly believe their former schools would investigate claims of discrimination as best they can.
2That is a finding from an opinion study by Gallup, an American company known for its public opinion research.
3The study was published in May.
4Gallup questioned more than 1,600 graduates of over 700 colleges and universities across the country.
5Each person completed a four-year study program between 2010 and 2019.
6The graduates were asked to base their answer on a five-point rating system, with five meaning "strongly agree" and one being "strongly disagree."
7The survey found that just 27 percent of those questioned "strongly agreed" that their school would fully investigate claims of discrimination.
8John Clark is an education expert with Gallup.
9He says it is important to note which graduates were more likely to believe school officials would take necessary action against discrimination.
10Nearly 30 percent of white graduates strongly agreed that their school would fully investigate claims of discrimination.
11Yet only 19 percent of Black graduates, 21 percent of Asians and 23 percent of Hispanic graduates gave the same answer.
12Gallup did not say if its researchers questioned graduates belonging to other ethnic or racial groups.
13Clark suggests the differences are likely linked to the small numbers of Blacks, Asians and Hispanics in college faculty and administration positions.
14He noted that over the past 30 years, the U.S. college student population has grown more and more diverse.
15But many professors and school administrators are white, and largely male.
16If students do not see people who share their life experiences in such positions, they are less likely to believe their school will take their issues seriously, Clark said.
17Raechele Pope says she is not at all surprised by the study's findings.
18Pope is a professor of higher education studies at the University of Buffalo in New York.
19She is also the university's chief diversity officer.
20She notes that as far back as the 1970s, when she went to college, students were calling for more diverse faculty positions.
21But little has changed, even as colleges and universities have increased efforts to diversify the student body.
22One study published in January found that the number of full-time black faculty at Pennsylvania State University actually fell by about two percent over a 15-year period.
23Pope argues the root of the problem is that many Americans do not believe discrimination is a real problem.
24Yet a growing body of research provides evidence of racial inequality in many areas of American society, including policing, education and finance.
25"Colleges and universities are microcosms of the United States," Pope said.
26"It's a microcosm of the big problems that we face. And so, if you don't deal with racism, with anti-black ... structures in your system ... in the United States, then you're not dealing with them in the campuses any differently."
27Pope said another issue is that higher education, in general, is slow to change, no matter what issue it is facing.
28Michigan State University and Ohio State University, for example, have only recently had to answer for years-old claims of sexual wrongdoing on their campuses.
29Shane Windemeyer is executive director of Campus Pride, a group that works in support of LGBTQ students.
30LGBTQ is short for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning.
31Windemeyer agrees that the speed at which colleges and universities deal with these issues is a problem.
32He told VOA "Often times, colleges ... play the waiting game with students, where they know that they'll be gone in four years or five years. And so it's like .... 'Oh, well we lost that student, so what are we supposed to do?' And colleges need to be held responsible on their own to ...create a safer, more inclusive campus community," he said.
33Windemeyer added that the issue is not limited to just racial discrimination.
34After all, only 24 percent of LGBTQ students strongly agreed their schools would fully investigate discrimination claims.
35That compares to 28 percent of non-LGBTQ students.
36Windemeyer noted a rising number of cases of students and faculty members claiming academic freedom and freedom of speech in defense of what he calls hateful statements.
37But he argues this not about a difference in opinions or beliefs.
38It is about making all students feel welcome on campus.
39Windemeyer, Pope and Clark agree U.S. colleges and universities must do more to gain the trust of their students.
40They say this starts with re-examining and strengthening discrimination policies, especially those related to employment and the admissions process.
41And it may lead to more schools making classes on discrimination and diversity a requirement for students, as the California State University system decided to do in July.
42I'm Pete Musto.
1In the United States, only about one-fourth of college graduates strongly believe their former schools would investigate claims of discrimination as best they can. 2That is a finding from an opinion study by Gallup, an American company known for its public opinion research. The study was published in May. 3Gallup questioned more than 1,600 graduates of over 700 colleges and universities across the country. Each person completed a four-year study program between 2010 and 2019. 4The graduates were asked to base their answer on a five-point rating system, with five meaning "strongly agree" and one being "strongly disagree." 5The survey found that just 27 percent of those questioned "strongly agreed" that their school would fully investigate claims of discrimination. 6John Clark is an education expert with Gallup. He says it is important to note which graduates were more likely to believe school officials would take necessary action against discrimination. 7Nearly 30 percent of white graduates strongly agreed that their school would fully investigate claims of discrimination. Yet only 19 percent of Black graduates, 21 percent of Asians and 23 percent of Hispanic graduates gave the same answer. 8Gallup did not say if its researchers questioned graduates belonging to other ethnic or racial groups. 9Clark suggests the differences are likely linked to the small numbers of Blacks, Asians and Hispanics in college faculty and administration positions. He noted that over the past 30 years, the U.S. college student population has grown more and more diverse. But many professors and school administrators are white, and largely male. 10If students do not see people who share their life experiences in such positions, they are less likely to believe their school will take their issues seriously, Clark said. 11Raechele Pope says she is not at all surprised by the study's findings. Pope is a professor of higher education studies at the University of Buffalo in New York. She is also the university's chief diversity officer. 12She notes that as far back as the 1970s, when she went to college, students were calling for more diverse faculty positions. But little has changed, even as colleges and universities have increased efforts to diversify the student body. 13One study published in January found that the number of full-time black faculty at Pennsylvania State University actually fell by about two percent over a 15-year period. 14Pope argues the root of the problem is that many Americans do not believe discrimination is a real problem. Yet a growing body of research provides evidence of racial inequality in many areas of American society, including policing, education and finance. 15"Colleges and universities are microcosms of the United States," Pope said. "It's a microcosm of the big problems that we face. And so, if you don't deal with racism, with anti-black ... structures in your system ... in the United States, then you're not dealing with them in the campuses any differently." 16Pope said another issue is that higher education, in general, is slow to change, no matter what issue it is facing. Michigan State University and Ohio State University, for example, have only recently had to answer for years-old claims of sexual wrongdoing on their campuses. 17Shane Windemeyer is executive director of Campus Pride, a group that works in support of LGBTQ students. LGBTQ is short for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning. 18Windemeyer agrees that the speed at which colleges and universities deal with these issues is a problem. He told VOA "Often times, colleges ... play the waiting game with students, where they know that they'll be gone in four years or five years. And so it's like .... 'Oh, well we lost that student, so what are we supposed to do?' And colleges need to be held responsible on their own to ...create a safer, more inclusive campus community," he said. 19Windemeyer added that the issue is not limited to just racial discrimination. After all, only 24 percent of LGBTQ students strongly agreed their schools would fully investigate discrimination claims. That compares to 28 percent of non-LGBTQ students. 20Windemeyer noted a rising number of cases of students and faculty members claiming academic freedom and freedom of speech in defense of what he calls hateful statements. But he argues this not about a difference in opinions or beliefs. It is about making all students feel welcome on campus. 21Windemeyer, Pope and Clark agree U.S. colleges and universities must do more to gain the trust of their students. They say this starts with re-examining and strengthening discrimination policies, especially those related to employment and the admissions process. And it may lead to more schools making classes on discrimination and diversity a requirement for students, as the California State University system decided to do in July. 22I'm Pete Musto. 23Pete Musto reported on this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 24_______________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26graduate(s) - n. a person who has earned a degree or diploma from a school, college, or university 27faculty - n. the group of teachers in a school or college 28diverse - adj. made up of people or things that are different from each other 29microcosm(s) - n. something, such as a place or an event, that is seen as a small version of something much larger 30campus(es) - n. the area and buildings around a university, college, school 31lesbian - n. a woman who is sexually attracted to other women 32gay - n. a man who is sexually attracted to other men 33bisexual - adj. a person who is sexually attracted to both men and women 34transgender - adj. a person whose sexual identity differs from the sex the person had at birth 35academic - adj. of or relating to schools and education 36We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.