The challenges facing many communities of color have been well-chronicled. There are any number of reports focused on these communities that cite the depressing statistics across a number of indicators, such as educational performance, unemployment, housing, poverty, health, incarceration, recidivism and life expectancy. The reports are often seemingly devoid of any real hope for progress and improvement.
In 2007, in the annual publication “The State of Black America,” the National Urban League investigated this issue from the perspective of the African-American community and highlighted a number of critical statistics and analyses. It was this publication that led the College Board to the conclusion that something had to be done to raise the visibility of this issue in the educational arena. The recently completed study “The Educational Crisis Facing Young Men of Color” seeks to call attention to the current circumstances but also provides a hopeful perspective on how the nation might make real progress in addressing the underlying issues.
When one looks at educational performances of males of color, one finds that many of the statistics are even more troubling for subgroups than they appear in the aggregate. The College Board investigated four communities — African-Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans and Asians — and it soon became clear that the conditions were problematic for all of these groups. A special word about the Asian community, which is often described as and is quite successful in general, but is often seen in far too simple terms: The reality is much more complex, for we discovered that while many within that community are finding success, Asian males from Southeast Asia and the Pacific had performance profiles similar to less successful minority groups.
Boys are underperforming in schools, and this leads to several social ills. For example, African-American men, about 7 percent of the population, constitute almost 50 percent of the prison population, while Hispanic men, also about 7 percent of the population, make up 20 percent of the prison population. Many are repeat offenders — of the males released from state prisons in 1994, 68.4 percent were rearrested within three years and 47.6 percent were reconvicted within three years. The vast majority of those in prison are poorly educated. It stands to reason, therefore, that education must be at least one of the tools we use to reverse this trend.
The reason for undertaking this work is simple. If the United States is to thrive, the full potential of its citizenry must be developed and productively utilized. For a number of years now, we have been hearing that the U.S. is losing in the international competition for brains. We know, for example, that only 26 percent of African-Americans, 18 percent of Hispanics and 24 percent of Native Americans and Pacific Islanders have at least an associate degree. So there is vast untapped potential that can help support our social and economic development — if we make the commitment to reach out to those groups. Indeed, we believe there is both an economic and moral imperative to do so.
A major part of the challenge, and a clear opportunity to intercede, lies in innovative supports and opportunities that improve the low levels of educational performance of many of these groups. Today, America’s youths experience intense pressures to succeed and perform without being given either the academic or social supports they need to thrive. Young people must be afforded multiple opportunities to reach their greatest potential in order to be ready for college, work and life.
Roll Call has launched a new feature, Hill Navigator, to advise congressional staffers and would-be staffers on how to manage workplace issues on Capitol Hill. Please send us your questions — anything from office etiquette, to handling awkward moments, to what happens when the work life gets too personal. Submissions will be treated anonymously.
