Marybeth Gasman - Doing the Right Thing: How Colleges and Universities Can Undo Systemic Racism in Faculty Hiring

DOING THE RIGHT THING

Doing the Right Thing

How Colleges and Universities Can Undo Systemic Racism in Faculty Hiring

Marybeth Gasman

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS

PRINCETON & OXFORD

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Gasman, Marybeth, author.

Title: Doing the right thing : how colleges and universities can undo systemic racism in faculty hiring / Marybeth Gasman.

Description: Princeton : Princeton University Press, 2022. | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2021039410 (print) | LCCN 2021039411 (ebook) | ISBN 9780691193076 (hardback) | ISBN 9780691229447 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Minority college teachersSelection and appointmentUnited States. | Minority college teachersRecruitingUnited States. | Racism in higher educationUnited States. | Faculty integrationUnited States. | BISAC: EDUCATION / Higher | EDUCATION / Leadership

Classification: LCC LB2332.72 .G37 2022 (print) | LCC LB2332.72 (ebook) | DDC 3378.1/2089dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021039410

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021039411

Version 1.0

British Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available

Editorial: Peter Dougherty & Alena Chekanov

Production Editorial: Ali Parrington

Production: Erin Suydam

Publicity: Maria Whelan & Kathryn Stevens

Copyeditor: Molan Goldstein

Jacket illustration by Liam Eisenberg, Marlena Agency

For Chlo, who is the sole evidence I have that there is a God.

She walks by my side as we ascend the peaks of life and lifts me up in the valleys.

I think weve been really focused [on] hiring from the Ivies, weve got to get the thoroughbred, and that has also precluded us from looking more broadly at candidates in terms of race, ethnicity, or other aspects of diversity. Now there is some talk of extending beyond, but I will wait to see how much the departments actually will end up doing it, because we want to be like Harvard.

AAU UNIVERSITY DEAN

1. xi
2. xiii

. AAU Universities by Region and Public/Private Status

. Faculty Racial and Ethnic Diversity at AAU Institutions (Tenured and Tenure-Track)

. Faculty Racial and Ethnic Diversity at AAU Institutions (Tenured)

. AAU Institutions with ADVANCE Grants

. Racial/Ethnic Breakdown of Tenure-Track and Tenured Women Faculty at AAU Institutions

. Racial/Ethnic Breakdown of Tenure-Track and Tenured Women Faculty at AAU Institutions

. PhD Conferrals by Race/Ethnicity in Select Fields, 20112018 (All Institutions)

. Black/African American PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. Hispanic PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. Asian American PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. American Indian/Alaska Native PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. White PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. Nonresident PhD Conferrals by Select Fields and Institutional Type, 20112018

. Non-AAU Very High Research Institutions

. Non-AAU High Research Institutions

. AAU Provosts Gender and Race

. Full-time T14 Law Students by Race/Ethnicity, Fall 2016 (Percentages)

The United States is in the midst of a reckoning; it is being judged by its citizens for the world to see. Its institutions and organizations, which have been touting their commitment to racial and ethnic diversity, have been confronted overtly. Hollow statements that have long masked missing representation, and failed inclusion efforts, are no longer believed or accepted. People from all racial and ethnic backgrounds are challenging the efforts and commitments of those in power in corporations, the military, the police, the government, arts organizations, entertainment, the legal system, publishing, media, education, and many other areas. They are asking for movement, action, and proof that our nations institutions are serious about embracing racial justice and dismantling systemic racism. Colleges and universities are not immune to this criticism and call to action. In fact, like all of our institutions, they are responsible for clinging to sameness and creating and upholding systems that perpetuate the status quo and fail to foster equity. Given their commitment to diversity and academic excellence, they must lead the way to racial justice and equity instead of being dragged along kicking and screaming as they hold tightly to the past.

Marybeth Gasman

July 25, 2020

DOING THE RIGHT THING

A lot of these myths that are out thereOh, we dont have the pipeline, or We cant get them to move to our town, or The research areas dont match up with what we are looking forall of these myths are just created to sustain the situation that we have. The key is to recognize that falling back on all of these old myths is a barrier to making progress.

AAU UNIVERSITY PROVOST

Colleges and universities in the United States are admired around the world for their research, innovation, and academic excellence. In recent years, many institutions of higher education have even been lauded for their increased diversity in enrollment at the undergraduate level. To the dismay of some who believe diversity waters down institutional quality and academic excellence, between 1975 and 2016, the population of college undergraduates changed significantly, with increases across most racial and ethnic groups. Hispanic student enrollment has increased from 4% to 18%, Black student enrollment from 10% to 14%, Asian American and Pacific Islander enrollment from 2% to 7%, and Native American enrollment from 0.7% to 0.8% (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2019). At some of the nations most selective institutions, the percentage of undergraduate students of color has increased substantially, and high standards of quality have remained intact. For example, as I am writing this book, Columbia University, New York University, and Stanford University have student bodies that consist of 66% students of color. Even more impressive, UCLA and UC-Berkeley boast undergraduate populations that consist of 73% students of color. And in the middle of the country, both Northwestern University and the University of Chicago have student bodies consisting of nearly 55% students of color. Racial and ethnic diversification has advanced in undergraduate student populations across the country and even at the nations most prestigious institutions.