(2006). Home Is Where the Heart Is: Can Cory Booker Save Newark's Schools?. Education Next, v6 n4 p23-29 Fall. Newark, New Jersey, once called "The Worst American City," is a city that has lost 36 percent of its population since 1930 (from 442,000 to 280,000) and is now more than half black and nearly 40 percent poor. It is a city, reported the "New York Times," where "budgeting is a Rube Goldberg morass with a deficit looming," and where the school system, the state's largest, with 43,000 students, was so bad that it was taken over by the state more than a decade ago. Today the schools are still a mess, with 70 percent of 11th graders and 65 percent of 8th graders unable to pass the state's math tests. This is the Newark that Cory Booker says needs more policing, more comprehensive child-welfare policies, school vouchers, and more charter schools. Booker defeated state senator Ronald Rice and two other candidates in the city's mayoralty race by a healthy margin. He now has the opportunity–some might call it the unenviable task–of effecting education overhaul… [Direct]
(1993). Attitudes on Staff Participation and the Acceptance of Women and Minorities at Delta College: Results of a Staff Opinion Survey Made in Response to an Accreditation Report Recommendation. Research Report. In response to an accreditation team's concern over the status of affirmative action, the campus atmosphere toward women and ethnic minorities, and involvement of staff in decision-making at San Joaquin Delta College (SJDC), in California, the college conducted a survey of staff attitudes. A questionnaire was distributed to all 942 full- and part-time faculty, administrators, and classified staff in December 1992, resulting in 359 usable responses for a sample that closely matched college demographics. Survey findings included the following: (1) 45% of the respondents agreed and 9% disagreed that SJDC was making a strong effort to recruit women into management, while for women only 30% agreed compared to 60% of men; (2) 67% of the male respondents disagreed that sexism was a major problem at the college, compared to 40% for females; (3) staff as a whole indicated that SJDC was making a strong effort to recruit minorities and that they were well represented in management positions,… [PDF]
(1992). The Status of Female Faculty at West Chester University of Pennsylvania: An Historical Perspective, 1974-1989. This report presents data from the West Chester University segment of a 16-year longitudinal study of female faculty in the state system and its 14 universities. The study is designed to address the following questions: What are the numbers and distribution among professional ranks of female faculty prior to the State System's 1988 affirmative action plan? Have the number and percentage of female faculty remained constant? Are female faculty represented equitably at each professional rank? The information permits comparisons in the following areas: (1) the numbers and percentages of full-time faculty by sex as related to the numbers and percentages for West Chester alone, the State System as a whole, and similar Category II-A and II-B public universities; (2) the distribution of full-time faculty among professional ranks by sex as related to the numbers and percentages for West Chester, the State System, and similar Category II-A and II-B public universities; (3) the numbers and… [PDF]
(1998). ARL: A Bimonthly Newsletter of Research Library Issues and Actions, Nos. 190-195. February-December 1997. This document consists of six issues of the ARL (Association of Research Libraries) Newsletter, covering the year 1997. Each issue of the newsletter includes some or all of the following sections: "Current Issues," reports from the Office of Scholarly Communication, Office for Management Services, and Coalition for Networked Information, "Federal Relations,""Statistics and Measurement,""Diversity,""ARL Activities," and a calendar of events. Topics covered include: partnerships to develop geographic information systems services; licensing electronic resources; increasing minority representation in the library profession; projections of 1997 purchasing strategies; themes in literature on the topic of change; the difference between Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity; museum collaboration in marketing ventures for digital images; California Digital Library; balancing the academic versus market value of university… [PDF]
(1988). The Corporate Stake in Educating One Third of a Nation. The importance of higher education for people of color who will soon make up one third of the U.S. population, is emphasized from the point of view of the Aetna Life & Casualty Foundation. Although the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s changed the course of history and people of color were offered access to higher education, something went wrong. The promise of the 1960s and 1970s diminished to the point where there is now declining participation and a tragic retention rate. Also, in the 1980s, the federal government backpedaled on affirmative action. Now not enough people of color are enrolling in college and even fewer are graduating. The gaps between minority groups and the majority population persist or are widening in education, employment, income, health, longevity, and other measures of well-being. If these disparities continue, the nation may suffer a lower standard of living, intensified social conflict, declining ability to compete in the world market, faltering…
(1978). Women and the Skilled Trades. Information Series No. 132. The participation of women in the skilled trades increased appreciably between 1960 and 1970; however, the rate of increase was not as large as could have been expected if women had entered the skilled trades at the same rate they entered the total civilian labor market. The gap between men's and women's median earnings was greater in 1970 than in 1960, but in the skilled trades the decrease in women's earnings in proportion to men's was smaller. The participation of women in the skilled trades appears to be higher in larger companies in large metropolitan areas than it is on the average nationwide. Also, proportionately more minority women are employed in the skilled trades by such companies. Women continue to be underrepresented in both apprenticeship training programs and vocational/technical education programs for the skilled trades even though affirmative action regulations and special stimulus programs have made some gains. Women have been well represented as participants in… [PDF]
(1982). Changing Adolescents' Attitudes Toward Nontraditional Career Choices: An Intervention Process. An intervention project was conducted to determine if affirmative action strategies had an effect on promoting nontraditional program and course selection among 460 eighth and tenth grade students from urban, suburban, and rural communities in New York. The groups, about half male and half female, were divided into a control group and an experimental group. Both groups took pre- and posttests to determine their attitudes toward careers, specifically toward occupations non-traditional for their sex. Classroom activities, such as the viewing of filmstrips, class discussions, and student-parent discussions about sex-stereotyped attitudes were conducted with the experimental group. The results of the study, as measured by the posttest, provide evidence that classroom activities which provide students with information about career decision-making and nontraditional career choices and the chance to discuss the choice process can affect student's attitudes in a more positive direction…
(1990). Future Faculty Development Program. In an effort to develop a pool of qualified candidates for full-time faculty positions, with particular emphasis on increasing the number of ethnic minority faculty to reflect the adult population of California, Southwestern College (SC) developed the Future Faculty Development Program (FFDP). The purpose of the program is fourfold: (1) to provide a unique opportunity for current students and recent alumni of SC to develop those talents, skills, and qualifications necessary to prepare for a career in community college teaching or counseling; (2) to provide the opportunity for such individuals to become employed by the District in one of three differentiated staffing levels (i.e., Work Study/Federal Work Study, Internships, and Instructional Assistantships) under the mentorship of supervising faculty and staff; (3) to provide the means for a proactive institutional response to the affirmative action mandates of Assembly Bill 1725, and the near future prospect of massive faculty/staff…
(1996). The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education, 1995-96. Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education, v6 n1-26 1995-96. This document consists of all of volume 6 (26 issues) of the serial "The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education," a biweekly journal which addresses issues in higher education for Hispanic Americans. Each issue presents four feature articles, a policy update called "Outlook on Washington" and several opinion pieces. Feature articles address the following topics: political activism, racial harassment, the freshman year experience, the status of minorities 40 years after the Brown decision, Latino leaders, Hispanic education, Hispanic colleges, bilingualism, race-based scholarships, Black-Latino coalitions, affirmative action, recruitment/retention of minority students, the Latino immigrant, Latino political organization, Columbus Day controversy, Latino businesses, diversity education at the elementary level, racism and tenure denial, African influence in Latino culture, the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, the Scholastic Assessment Test, gifted… [PDF]
(2001). Findings & Trends, Fall 1990–Fall 2000. AASCU/NASULGC Enrollment Report. Findings from a study of institutions that are members of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) or the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC) show that enrollment at public four-year institutions increased 3.4% from fall 1990 to fall 2000, going from 5.91 million students to 6.11 million students. During this period, the enrollment of racial/ethnic minorities rose 34.4% at these institutions while the enrollment of white students fell 10.6%. Similar trends were evident for both AASCU and NASULGC member institutions. At both sets of institutions, the total number of men declined slightly, and the number of women increased moderately. Public four-year colleges and universities are experiencing enrollment growth at opposite ends of the age spectrum, with greatest increases in those under 20 and those 50 and older. The greatest gains for institutions that are members of both associations was in the Southeast, and the… [PDF]
(1985). The Way Forward: Women in Higher Education Management in Australia. Report of a National Conference (Armidale, New South Wales, Australia, July 18-20, 1984). Issues concerning the participation of women in college administration in Australia are presented in this conference report. Of concern were structural and attitudinal barriers to greater participation of women in educational management and the role of government in fostering equal opportunity. Included are an overview of the conference, conference papers, and recommendations from the conference. Paper titles and authors are: "Directions for Change" (Denise Bradley); "A Vice-Chancellor's Perspective" (Robert Segall); "A Union Perspective" (Jo Gaha); "Changing Opportunities for Women in Universities: A Question of Responsibility and Will" (Gretchen Poiner); "The Politics of Merit and the Exercise of Power: Issues in the Promotion of Academic Women to Positions of Influence" (Clare Burton); "Attitudinal Barriers to the Participation of Women in Educational Management" (Bronwyn Davies); "Changing from the Middle"… [PDF]
(1999). Promise and Dilemma: Perspectives on Racial Diversity and Higher Education. The essays and commentaries in this volume on racial diversity and higher education are grouped into three parts. The first offers a broad perspective and an historical review of the complex history of the United States' effort to achieve racial diversity; the second notes empirical studies of the extent of racial disparities in academic preparation and performance; and the third considers racial diversity from a broad societal viewpoint. The essays and commentaries are: (1) "Promise and Dilemma: Incorporating Racial Diversity in Selective Higher Education" (Eugene Y. Lowe, Jr.); (2) "Promoting High Academic Achievement among Non-Asian Minorities" (L. Scott Miller); (3) "A Threat in the Air: How Stereotypes Shape Intellectual Identity and Performance" (Claude M. Steele); (4) "A Practitioner's View from Texas: Comments on the Essays by L. Scott Miller and Claude M. Steel" (Philip Uri Treisman); (5) "Assessment and Student Diversity:…
(1994). Development of Recommendations To Improve Minority Faculty Hiring Procedures at Kansas City Kansas Community College. In response to the small number of minority faculty at Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC), a study was conducted to develop a set of recommendations to improve minority faculty hiring procedures and provide information and guidelines useful to administrative staff for recruiting minority faculty members. Criteria for establishing policy recommendations were developed from a literature review and telephone interviews with seven college personnel officers. Following a review of the criteria by three personnel experts and additional telephone interviews, recommendations for improving minority hiring were established, including: (1) listen to minority faculty's needs; (2) establish strategies to prepare the campus for intellectual, social, ethnic, and cultural diversity; (3) establish a staff conversion program to identify minority staff members in instructional support departments who may be interested in teaching; (4) establish diversity programs in all divisions and… [PDF]
(1994). Environmental Careers: A Pilot Employment Market Survey. In June 1994, Merritt College, in Oakland, California, conducted a study to determine career employment prospects for high school graduates and community college students in programs in the college's Environmental Sciences (ES) department and tech prep program. A sample of 178 organizations from the environmental industry was developed and divided into the categories of small businesses, large businesses or corporations, non-governmental organizations or advocacy groups, non-advocacy groups, governmental organizations, research organizations, physical plant management, professional and trade societies, and listing organizations. Telephone interviews were completed with individuals at 69% of the organizations, requesting their perceptions of employment trends and needs. In general, responses indicated that there was a growth in and an ongoing demand for community college graduates in environmental industries, especially through internships and affirmative action programs. Larger… [PDF]
(1990). Minorities in Higher Education: Selected Papers from an Interdisciplinary Conference Held at Hofstra University (Hempstead, New York, March 9-11, 1989). This report provides a selection of conference papers which discuss issues concerning minority participation in higher education, beginning with recognition of the many discrepancies between what are expressed as personal and organizational values and what parameters remain hidden. The papers consider the causes for limited minority participation in higher education and review some solutions. Papers include: (1) "Excellence and Equity in the Education of Minority Students" (A. W. Astin); (2) "Cultural Factors Differentiating Academically Unsuccessful Students, Academically Successful Students, and Faculty (P. Chu-Richardson); (3) "Perceptions and Experiences of Minorities at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs" (L. F. Dickson); (4) "Becoming Involved in College Life: A Comparative Study of Black and White College Students" (C. J. Thompson); (5) "Social Welfare Needs of African-American [Students] as Factors in Retention" (B. W….