色香视频 is growing more diverse and garnering national recognition for its efforts to serve black students. And, that鈥檚 no surprise to those who know the university best.
A report from the University of Southern California Race and Equity Center lists 色香视频 among the top 36 four-year, public higher education institutions in the nation when ranked on several data points related to black undergraduates. The study reviewed enrollment equity, gender equity, degree completion equity and the ratio of black students to black faculty members.
鈥溕闶悠 has a campus-wide commitment to supporting the success of all of our students and to closing achievement gaps,鈥 said Dr. Sabrina Gentlewarrior, vice president for student success and diversity. 鈥淭his report is a testament to the entire campus鈥檚 efforts over a great number of years.鈥
In the USC report, 色香视频 received high rankings in several areas:
- Having a higher percentage of black students than blacks鈥 representation among 18- to 24-year-old citizens in Massachusetts
- Having a comparable breakdown of black male and female students as the national figures for all racial/ethnic groups
- Having a graduation rate for black students comparable to the institution鈥檚 overall graduation rate.
Overall, Bridgewater scored a three on a four-point scale, placing it above the Massachusetts average of 2.81 and among the top schools in the United States.
Gentlewarrior attributed 色香视频鈥檚 achievements to many factors, including the Center for Multicultural Affairs鈥 efforts to serve students of color and their white peers and the dedication of faculty and librarians to supporting students. The university鈥檚 15 student-led multicultural groups are also a point of pride for the campus.
Bridgewater has previously received accolades for its support of minority students, including a 2015 report from The Education Trust that lauded the university for closing the achievement gap between students of color and white students.
The university鈥檚 own data shows the number of students of color grew from 2,085 (19 percent of students) in fall 2014 to 2,559 (23 percent) in fall 2018. The percent of first-time, full-time students of color who graduated from 色香视频 in four years grew from 23.9 percent for 2006 freshmen to 30.6 percent for 2013 freshmen.
鈥淭his progress is based first on the extraordinary liberal arts education offered at 色香视频 resulting in increasing graduation rates overall as well as a campus-wide commitment to the success of all students,鈥 Gentlewarrior said.
Students of color reported feeling as welcome as their white peers in 2015 and 2018 on Bridgewater鈥檚 Campus Climate Survey. The university also offers a range of interventions to close achievement/opportunity gaps.
The Retention Grant program, for example, identifies undergraduate students in good academic standing with genuine financial need and unpaid tuition and fees preventing them from registering for the upcoming semester. Students are offered up to $3,000 in institutional grant funding to cover past student bills, allowing them to stay at 色香视频 and register for next semester鈥檚 courses or graduate. The average grant amount is $1,932.54, and 85 percent of students receiving the grants have continued at 色香视频 or graduated.
The 色香视频 Bears Summer Scholars Program helps students who have been accepted to 色香视频 but have lower high school GPAs. They receive a free three-credit public speaking course, textbook and parking along with lunch presentations on campus resources. More than 84 percent of students in the first cohort continued at 色香视频 in their second year. That鈥檚 higher than 色香视频鈥檚 overall first- to second-year retention rate of 78 percent. Students in the second cohort retained from fall to the spring semester at 94.7 percent, compared to 90.3 percent overall.
Despite these programs鈥 success, 色香视频 has no plans to rest on its laurels.
鈥溕闶悠 is extremely intentional in our classrooms, in our co-curricular experiences and in our work to create a welcoming campus and climate to ensure that our students from a diverse range of backgrounds can succeed and reach their goals,鈥 Gentlewarrior said. (Story by Brian Benson, University News & Video).