DISPARITIES & GAPS in America - Brief Article - Statistical Data Included

Black Issues in Higher Education, March 1, 2001

The vast statistical record attests to the enormity of the gaps that continue to plague American society. Whether you're looking at education, incarceration rates, income, technology, or economic participation, the numbers speak for themselves. Included here are just a few examples of the nation's unfinished agenda of bridging the gaps.

Demographics

[GRAPH OMITTED]

* THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Picking them off early and often 1996 National Adult Incarceration Rates

* Among Whites, prisoners age 30-34 had the highest incarceration rate in 1996: 469 per 100,000 White resident.

* Among Blacks, prisoners age 25-29 had the highest incarceration rate: 4,131 per 100,000.

* Among Hispanics, prisoners age 20-24 had the highest incarceration rate: 1,514 per 100,000.

* In a recent publication Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 1999. the U.S. Department of Justice reported that: From year end 1990 to mid year 1999 the rate of incarceration increased from 1 in every 218 U.S. resident to 1 in every 147.

SOURCE: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, CORRECTIONAL POPULATIONS IN THE U.S., 1996.

Academics

* COLLEGE-PREP TRACK

Enrollment by Income

Students from low-income families in 1992 were less likely to be enrolled in the college preparatory track.

[GRAPH OMITTED]

Enrollment by Ethnicity

African American and Latino students in 1992 were less likely to be enrolled in the college-preparatory track.

[GRAPH OMITTED]

* TEST SCORES & LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

(*) SAT I Verbal

                                        Male   Female      Total

American Indian or Alaskan Native       482      481        482
Asian, Asian American, or
  Pacific Islander                      501      498        499
African American or Black               431      436        434
Hispanic or Latino Background:
  Mexican or Mexican American           458      449        453
  Puerta Rican                          460      452        456
  Latin American, S. American,
  Central American,
  Other Hispanic or Latino              467      457        461
White                                   529      526        528
Other                                   509      506        508

(*) SAT I Math

                                       Male    Female      Total

American Indian or Alaskan Native       498      467        481
Asian, Asian American,
  or Pacific Islander                   583      548        565
African American or Black               436      419        426
Hispanic or Latino Background:
  Mexican or Mexican American           480      445        460
  Puerto Rican                          471      437        451
  Latin American, South
  American, Central American,
  or Other Hispanic or Latino           489      451        467
White                                   549      514        530
Other                                   538      497        515

(*) Note: Possible scores on each part of the SAT range from 200 to 800.

SOURCE: THE COLLEGE BOARD, 2000

Advance Placement Avgs.

National Totals, May 2000

                                   Male        Female

Amer. Indian/Alaskan               2.76          2.50
Black/Afro-Amer                    2.25          2.12
Chicano/Mex. Amer                  2.71          2.81
Asian/Asian Amer                   3.14          2.99
Puerto Rican                       2.81          2.85
Other Hispanic                     3.09          3.08
White                              3.17          2.97
Other                              3.12          2.93
Not Stated                         3.24           3.1
Mean Grade                         3.11          2.93

Based on a maximum score of 5

* Learning Environement

Students in high-poverty and high-minority schools are more likely to be taught by teachers lacking a major in their field, 1993-94.

[GRAPH OMITTED]

Technology

* HOME COMPUTERS

Percentage of U.S. households with computers at home, by annual family income:

$5,000-9,999                 11.0%
$20,000-24,999               23.5%
$35,000-49,999               46.9%
Over $75,000                 76.8%

SOURCE: U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

* INTERNET USE

Percentage of U.S. households using the Internet, by race/ethnicity:

Rural Urban Central City

                       U.S.    Rural    Urban    Central City

White non Hispanic     30%      24%      32%         32%
Black non Hispanic     11        7       12          10
Other non Hispanic     33       17       35          32
Hispanic               13       10       13          10

SOURCE: NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION, 1999

Student profiles

* HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS

1999 total Dropouts: 524,000

                     NUMBER OF DROPOUTS    PERCENT
                                           OF TOTAL

Men                        243,000           46.4
Women                      282,000           53.8
White                      377,000           71.9
Black                      118,000           22.5
Hispanic                   119,000           22.7

SOURCE: U.S. DEPT. OF LABOR

* TODAY'S STUDENTS COMPARED

The challenges of first-generation college students compared with students whose parents attended college