Chapter 6: Addressing the Shame of Higher Education: Programs That Support College Enrollment and Retention of Black Males

College enrollment and retention of African American males is in crisis. Strategies and solutions to these challenges require the collaborative efforts of students, families, and community leaders. Intervention programs that target this specific population are an important supplement to the education of African American males. This chapter reports on programs in existence to increase their academic achievement. This chapter offers a framework and illustrative examples for understanding how programs respond to the challenges of educating African American males. There are specific recommendations for funders and policymakers who aim to support existing programs in these efforts or create new programs.

The president of Teachers College at Columbia University, Arthur Levine, referred to the low enrollment and graduation rate of African American males in America as the “shame of higher education.” In the world’s wealthiest country where an increasing number of students pursue postsecondary education and educational attainment has increased among the adult population (Gandara, 2001), it really is a shame that African American males cluster at the bottom of almost every academic performance indicator. In 2000–2001, African American males accounted for 8.6% of the national public school population, but comprised a disproportionate number of those placed in special education, suspended, and/or expelled. Even class privilege fails to inoculate African American males from low academic performance. Middle-class African American males lag significantly behind white peers on grade point average and standardized tests (Jencks & Phillips, 1998; Noguera, 2003).