Understanding What Works: an Investigation of Model Programs for Recruiting, Retaining, and Supporting the Academic Achievement of Students of Color in Traditionally White Higher Education Institutions

As the United States becomes more increasingly heterogeneous, the need for cohesive, systemic, multicultural programming in higher education has multiplied.

The principal investigator of the National Campus Diversity Project (NCDP), along with a team of research assistants, has conducted three years of research to identify the best practices and characteristics found in successful campus diversity initiatives.

The NCDP is evaluating successful programs at twenty-eight traditionally white higher education institutions (a combination of public, private, large and small institutions) to determine the characteristics of those found to be most effective in improving race relations.

The major goals of the project are: 1) to identify model undergraduate campus diversity programs and to determine what makes these "models"; 2) to locate programs which have markedly improved the academic achievement of underrepresented minorities and to examine the structural components of such programs; and 3) to examine the admissions policies and practices of colleges that have been successful in increasing the number of underrepresented minority students.

In addition, through this research, we are exploring which factors contribute to the following goals: (a) reducing attrition and increasing recruitment of underrepresented minorities, and (b) improving the attitudes of all students so they can work together effectively in a complex society.

A major struggle for college educators and administrators alike is how to best aid those students who come from diverse backgrounds, and feel a lack of belonging on campus – especially the more elite campuses in the nation.

Researchers for NCDP have been seeking solutions for these dilemmas. Starting with an analysis of the current initiatives for minority students, we have evaluated those that appear to yield the best results in terms of minority recruitment, retention, and achievement.

We have evidence of programs that work, and those that do not. Recognizing model programs, or creating a prototype from common correlates of those that work, is the cornerstone of this research.

Model programs identified range from those originating in student affairs (e.g., Intergroup or Sustained Dialogue programs) and specific Academic disciplines (e.g., S.T.A.R.S. programs and Emerging Scholars programs) to institutional approaches led by upper administration aimed at changing the culture of a campus and making it more inclusive.

Design and Activities.

We concluded that successful or "model" programs would exhibit the following attributes: Higher than average retention rates for underrepresented minorities; higher than average rates of achievement among underrepresented minorities; lower than average "inhospitality indices" in campus climate; higher than average rates of multicultural programming in curricula; and higher than average rates of administrative and institutional transformation.

Once a cohort of model programs was established, a research team visited selected institutions and spoke with administrators, faculty and students at those institutions – in some cases, observing programs in operation. Analyses from these visits were incorporated with previous program findings to provide "Models of Best Practice."

The types of diversity initiatives that we have found fall into one of four domains: 1) how well a campus strives for inclusion and success of underrepresented populations; 2) campus climate and inter-group relations or how strongly the campus social environment contributes to students' access, retention and academic success; 3) how students perceive campus success in providing diversity in curricula, teaching and learning; and 4) administrative and institutional transformation, or how students perceive campus success in making a thorough commitment to the value of diversity as evidenced by college leadership, mission statements, and faculty and staff diversity (areas adapted from Smith and colleagues, 1997).

We have determined several models of diversity programs that are effective, and are in process of determining which of these models seems to have a sustained effect. By making this information available, we believe that campuses will have the tools to improve race relations quite dramatically.

We feel that our work provides concrete examples of practices in public and private institutions that create and sustain change in two relevant, connected areas: 1) improved campus race relations, and 2) improved retention and achievement for underrepresented students. Making this information available introduces a powerful change agent into our national agenda.