College Board Report Examines State of Minority Male Students 3/25/10

College Board Document, Forum Stress Pressure of Demographic Changes

Published in Print: February 3, 2010, as Report Examines Obstacles for Minority Male Students

By Ian Quillen

Male students who are members of minority groups continue to face overwhelming obstacles to pursuing their academic aspirations, according to a report from the College Board. The result, it says, is a little-talked-about “third America” that is predominantly male, largely incapable of contributing to society, and often destined to be incarcerated.

Members of Congress and educators warned of the consequences of failing to address those obstacles at a Capitol Hill forum last week, held in conjunction with the release of “The Educational Crisis Facing Young Men of Color.”

The report includes testimony from more than 60 scholars, practitioners, and activists convened by the New York City-based sponsor of the sat college-admissions test at four seminars called “dialogue days.” Each day was devoted to experiences of a particular group: African-Americans, Hispanics, Asian-Americans, and American Indians.

The report emphasizes that the nation is approaching a point in the future—estimated to be 2050—when minorities will constitute a collective majority. While its findings about the educational plight of minority males aren’t particularly surprising, commentators said, the moment in history makes them particularly troubling.

“It’s gotten to the point where we’re talking about, almost, a permanent underclass in this country, and that is a very, very dangerous development,” said U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, which partnered with the Asian Pacific American and black caucuses to sponsor the Jan. 26 briefing. “And it comes at a time … when the hues and the tones and the colors of this nation’s face are changing. That population merits more attention now because of that demographic shift that is happening across this nation.”

The College Board report says the crisis it explores has been overlooked by much of society, but is shared by male students across minority backgrounds. Its common themes include a lack of male role models, a search for respect outside of education, the sense of a failing education system, poverty, language barriers, community pressures, and a loss of cultural memory.

“We have studied it exhaustively, the challenges facing black males and males of color in general, but we’ve been unable to execute a plan that changes the results,” said Sidney Ribeau, the president of Howard University, a historically black institution in Washington. “That’s what I think we need to be doing, and I think the College Board by convening individuals here has taken a very important step.”

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