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REVIEW OF LITERATURE

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Introduction: Expert Commentary on Getting African American Students Interested in interdisciplinary Research.

This section highlights commentary from various experts on getting African American students interested in interdisciplinary research at institutions of higher learning. Since very few professionals have explored African American student engagement in research at universities in America, the following sections are mainly derivative of other areas of study of African American student engagement at universities in programs such as STEM, scholarships etc.

Attracting and retaining African Americans in Research at IUPUI

We found that getting African American students interested in research at institutions of higher learning has been an ongoing struggle. Even programs that manage to get a few African American students interested in their offerings, such as STEM, have difficulties retaining those students in the long term.

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Melissa Suran, the senior staff writer for The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), and former senior science writer for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, says, “For years, STEM programs have tried to attract Black grads and undergrads. There’s a new push to retain these students—and emulate the University program that seems to have had the success” (Suran, 2021).

 

This means that programs at different universities continue to try to attract African American students to pursue STEM majors, but there seems to be a low success rate in retaining the students who end up in those STEM programs.

More research showed that the same problem bleeds into research programs that try hard to recruit minority student researchers but have a hard time retaining those students throughout their undergraduate years. Estrada, Burnett, Campbell, et.al. offer an equally compelling argument in their paper on "Improving Underrepresented Minority Student Persistence in STEM", which was written across multiple universities (University of California, University of San Francisco, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, research institutions like Campbell-Kibler Associates, Inc., Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and others) saying, “While there have been some gains, national data continues to show that the disparity in STEM degree attainments for underrepresented minority students increases at each degree level, compared with White and Asian students.”

 

This means African American students often enroll in STEM programs at the same rate as White and Asian students, but fewer African American students actually finish the STEM programs compared to White and Asian graduates. STEM highlights just one area in academia where African American students are underrepresented. 

 

The desperate need to involve students of color in research and to retain them is as demanding as having them graduating in STEM programs at the same rate as their White and Asian counterparts. The Olaniyan Scholars Program continues to challenge the urgent need to involve African American students in research at IUPUI.

Role of mentorship in retaining Black scholars in University Programs

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Experts in student engagement and the experience of Black students in the academic setting agree that fostering interpersonal relationships between the teacher and student is essential. While discussing multicultural awareness in education and mentoring minority students, Pierce says “This same principle holds true in the student/faculty mentoring relationship.

 

The student may be unsure of the faculty member’s motivations to mentor. However, this will likely change over time if the faculty member is consistent and caring in feedback to the student and continues to build rapport.” Bottiani et al. place a similar emphasis on individual interactions, concluding that “The findings regarding perceived caring suggest that intervention to improve Black students’ perceptions of teacher caring may be needed and that such intervention may do better to focus on the student–teacher relationship itself, rather than targeting the broader social environment or sociopolitical context of the school for reform.”

 

These authors have a firm conviction that small-scale situations are as important as systemic reform. The research and expert commentary shared in this section helped inform the team's exploration and recommendations for the Olaniyan scholars program.

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Historically Black Colleges in comparison to predominantly White colleges

 

Studies have shown that Historically Black Colleges and Universities have had the most success in preparing Black students for careers in science. Lack of diverse faculty and cultural support in other colleges and universities has played a major role in the drop in African/Black enrollment and completion rates.

 

The supportive atmosphere and clear devotion to students of color in science at HBCUs has resulted in many top Black chemists. There are only 101 HBCUs out of thousands of US colleges and universities. HBCUs do not receive the same support available at predominantly White institutions but have higher percentages of Black student graduates. The sense of belonging is a key factor in these success rates. “Many of the top Black chemists who go on to successful careers in industry and academia are HBCU graduates,” says Widener. “ How do HBCUs do it?

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A supportive atmosphere; a diverse, encouraging faculty; and deliberately preparing students for PhDs.”  (2020, September 4) Predominantly White institutions must help black students prepare intentionally for their degrees and careers. Such help includes:

  • Access to tutoring 

  • Supportive cultural atmospheres

  • Mentoring

With Black student enrollment at the same numbers White student enrollment was in the 1990s, these efforts are more than needed. They are detrimental to the future of higher education.

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Pairing African-American Educators with African American Students


The literature suggests that having Black teachers and mentors in schools fosters engagement for black students. Cassandra Hart, an associate professor of education policy at University of California, Davis , says “Black students who were exposed to Black teachers by third grade were 13% more likely to enroll in college.

 

If kids had two Black teachers by third grade, the likelihood of college enrollment jumped to 32%” (Ahébée). Hart and her colleagues research on race congruency between black students and black teachers shows that having a black educator in front of the class acts as a role model and increases children’s long-term aspirations for themselves. She coins the term ‘role model effect’, where individuals advance in their personal and professional lives by modeling themselves after certain people whose success seems attainable.

Constance A. Lindsey, an assistant professor in UNC’s School of Education, agrees with Hart that black teachers are imperative to the academic success of black students. Lindsey writes “Many researchers have found that teachers of color produce more favorable academic outcomes — in the short run — for students of color in terms of standardized test scores, attendance, contemporaneous course performance, and suspensions” (Hobbs). Lindsey’s research encourages the need for the recruitment and retention of a diverse group of teachers, principals, and superintendents. Both professionals agree that black teachers not only encourage good academic performance for black students, but also provide a model for good behavior. 

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Establishing Skills Workshops Alongside College Coursework

The success of college students in pursuit of higher education lies in proper school funding and helping students pursue their professional objectives. Ashley Jeffrey and Laura Jimenez, authors of Preparing Students of Color for the Future Workforce, write “stackable credentials help to fulfill the requirements of higher degree programs, ensuring that students can continue their education without paying for credits that will not transfer to the higher credential” (Jeffrey and Jimenez).

 

The article presented two main problems: 1) gaps in partnerships between K-12 and workplace systems and 2) lack of funding for K-12 and college preparation. Laura Jimenez addressed both problems in an earlier article she wrote titled Preparing American Students for the Workforce of the Future. She suggested a more holistic approach to subvert the lack of career readiness, saying that students should acquire “academic mastery across a range of subjects and technical training, either in a specific field or in cross-cutting skills such as computer literacy, and 21st-century skills such as critical thinking and collaboration” (Jimenez). 

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Both professionals agree that this skills and college pipeline encourages schools to spend less time in classrooms and more time building market-ready skills to streamline employment for students. 

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