Half Of Male Grads of Color End Up In Jail, Jobless Or Dead

[Editor’s Note: The following is a release from The College Board Advocacy & Policy Center.]

Nearly half of young men of color age 15 to 24 who graduate from high school will end up unemployed, incarcerated or dead. This jarring statistic is just one of many highlighted in two new reports that will be released today by the College Board Advocacy & Policy Center at an event held in collaboration with the Harvard University’s W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research in Cambridge, Mass.. The reports, The Educational Experience of Young Men of Color: A Review of Research, Pathways and Progress and Capturing the Student Voice, are especially relevant given the need for these young men to attain postsecondary degrees if the nation’s economy is to thrive and compete globally.

The reports provide the most comprehensive data, research findings and recommendations to date to improve the educational experiences and pathways of young men of color. The qualitative research study, conducted in collaboration with the Business Innovation Factory (BIF), provides findings from 92 in-depth personal student interviews that are captured through video storytelling. This information is combined in a dynamic website. Together, these resources provide a compelling narrative that tracks the progress and pitfalls for young men of color from high school through college. In addition, there is a legal implications and policy brief that provides guidance for designing programs and policies to serve these students. Last year, the College Board Advocacy & Policy Center released a report that explored The Educational Crisis Facing Young Men of Color. This initiative builds off that work.

The reports seek to give a balanced view of the educational issues that exist for young men of color across four minority groups — African Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, Hispanics/Latinos and Native Americans — throughout the K–20 pipeline. According to the findings, just 26 percent of African Americans, 18 percent of Hispanic Americans, and 24 percent of Native Americans and Pacific Islanders have at least an associate degree. The reports also provide an analysis of the postsecondary pathways for young men of color and identify the barriers and catalysts to college.

“At a time when our nation is committed to reclaiming its place as the world leader in higher education, we can no longer afford to ignore the plight of our young men of color,” said Gaston Caperton, College Board President.

“As long as educational opportunities are limited for some, we all suffer. We rise as one nation and we fall as one nation. But if we keep working hard — if we keep listening to each other and to our students — we can soften our landings and reach historic new heights.”

“These reports cast into stark view what all Americans, unfortunately, have known for a long time: that access to education in this country is a right that not all of our children enjoy in equal measure,” said Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. “But the devastating numbers and the sobering statistics are a call to action through the recommendations outlined in this innovative report. Only with genuine and profound educational reform can we create equal opportunities for young men of color and indeed for all Americans.”

“As our country works to rise above the serious economic challenges we face, we must commit to reaching every young person in our schools,” said Governor Deval Patrick. “If we as a nation are to succeed – economically and as a leader in education and innovation – we need all of our students to succeed as well.”

“In the current economic climate and era of global competitiveness, there is an urgent need to address the stark and undeniable barriers that prevent so many young men of color from earning college degrees and reaching their fullest potential,” said Business Innovation Factory founder and Chief Catalyst Saul Kaplan. “By capturing the authentic voices of these students, we begin to bring the experiences of these young men to life in a way that makes their voices central to the national conversation about transforming the education system. BIF is proud to be part of this important initiative.”

Key recommendations outlined in the studies include encouraging policymakers to make improving outcomes for young men of color a national priority, increasing community, business and school partnerships to provide mentoring and support for these young men, and improving teacher education programs and providing professional development training that includes cultural and gender-responsive training.