Revisiting W.E.B. Du Bois' Talented Tenth Framework to Create Equity in Education: How Black Philanthropy Can Assist in Leveling the Playing Field in STEM Education

It has long been understood that many higher education institutions have failed to create a level playing field in the realms of both access and achievement for marginalized communities. These failures are particularly evident when examining the disproportionately low numbers of African American men in STEM fields. While a great deal of scholarship, speculation, and policy recommendations have been afforded to this topic, very few have asked the question of whose job it is to fund initiatives to support African American men in STEM? In this chapter, the authors revisit W. E. B. Du Bois' Talented Tenth framework to understand and make a case for the role of philanthropy in supporting diversity in STEM initiatives for African American men and how philanthropic investments from successful African Americans and businesses can create the economic structure necessary to foster interest in STEM fields from African American men. Moreover, the authors believe that an increase in Black philanthropic behavior will be instrumental in making the aspirations of program implementation and policy change a reality in higher education.