Even when diversity, equity and inclusion efforts were in full effect at Texas colleges and universities, graduation rates for black students still lagged well behind other demographic groups, according to the results of a new survey.
In 2022 and 2023, black students had the lowest graduation rates, at 28 percent and 29 percent, respectively, the survey found. In comparison, female students and white students came in at about 50 percent, and male students and Latino students came in at about 37 percent.
Asian students led across the board, the survey added, with their four-year graduation rate increasing from 63 percent in 2022 to 64 percent in 2023.
It’s one finding of many pulled together and published this month by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to develop “baseline numbers” to determine what effects the state’s ban on DEI in higher education will have on students in coming years.
Senate Bill 17, which was signed into law in 2023 and went into effect this year, forced colleges to close DEI offices and fire DEI-related staffers in the Lone Star state. The law requires a review of higher education stats to determine how the closures help or hurt students.
Under the law, the board will conduct a biennial survey to study the law’s effects on the application rate, acceptance rate, matriculation rate, retention rate, grade point average, and graduation rate of students at colleges and universities broken down by race, sex and ethnicity.
The survey aims to review “students’ access to higher education, progression through their academic journey, and time to completion.”
The College Fix reached out to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for comment, and its media spokesperson Mike Eddleman said the board does not comment on “legislative policies and their impact.”
The survey aims to review three key components: “students’ access to higher education, progression through their academic journey, and time to completion.”
Texas state Sen. Brandon Creighton, who authored the law, told KTSM that the new survey data show DEI was ineffective as black students fell behind even when it was in effect.
“We saw that across the state of Texas the diversity, equity, and inclusion offices were taking us backwards,” Creighton said, adding he would prefer money spent on DEI used to develop better resources to help students.
“Graduation rates highlight persistent gender and racial disparities across two-year and four-year institutions,” the survey states. “…African American students consistently achieve the lowest graduation rates across all timeframes.
It notes external factors such as “socioeconomic status, high school rank, and college readiness” may have played a role in the results.
Emily Witt, a media strategist with the Texas Freedom Network, told KTSM she believes these figures will get worse with DEI programming gone.
Texas House Rep. John Kuempel, chair for the Committee on Higher Education, did not respond to a request from The College Fix seeking comment.
The survey also looked at retention rates at community colleges and four-year universities and found that females and Asians are most likely to not drop out of school. In contrast, African American students had the lowest rates of retention for 2022 and 2023.
In terms of grade point averages at four-year institutions, female students slightly outperformed their male counterparts; Asian American students had the highest academic performances; and black students had “the lowest percentages across all groups and years,” the survey found.
MORE: Gov. Abbott signs law abolishing DEI offices at Texas colleges, universities
IMAGE: Mr. Nikon / Shutterstock
Like The College Fix on Facebook / Follow us on Twitter
Please join the conversation about our stories on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, MeWe, Rumble, Gab, Minds and Gettr.