This Issue: Exploring Racial Equity in Higher Education

This month's newsletter has a focus on the topic of racial equity. Lorelle L. Espinosa, vice resident for research at the American Council on Education (ACE), graciously accepted our invitation to be the guest editor for this issue. She is responsible for developing the organization’s thought leadership and research agenda. Dr. Espinosa is also a research affiliate of the Pullias Center. While at ACE, Espinosa led and published a seminal study on race-conscious policies and admissions practices which has been cited in several amicus briefs to the United States Supreme Court and has advanced the understanding of diversity-focused policy.

Lorelle L. Espinosa: "The Era of Public Scholarship is Now" This October began with a momentous court decision. U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs ruled in favor of Harvard University in a court case that challenged the consideration of race in the university’s admissions process. The decision vindicated those who have long advocated for race-conscious practices, yet we know that the case is not over. The plaintiff has already appealed the ruling, and the case is expected to eventually make its way to the Supreme Court. This is remarkable given that the Harvard case comes less than three years after the high court upheld the narrowly-tailored consideration of race as one factor in a holistic admissions process. Fisher v. University of Texas represented the fourth time in four decades that the Supreme Court upheld such consideration. Given the persistent racial equity gaps that continue to confront the American education system, it’s hard to imagine turning away from the consideration of race in admissions. Yet that is the trend before us. On the same day that the Harvard decision was handed down, a case against the University of North Carolina from the same plaintiff moved forward... Continue Reading

New Report: Supporting Diverse Student Populations In a further exploration into the issue of racial equity, a new report from the Pullias Center and the American Council on Education (ACE) written by Dr. Adrianna Kezar discusses how colleges and universities can fulfill a student success agenda through the creation of a diverse infrastructure that enables the overall institution to effectively mobilize to serve diverse student populations. The report includes a forward by Dr. Lorelle Espinosa. Read the Report

42nd Pullias Lecture Details Announced The issue of racial equity will be front and center for the 42nd Pullias Lecture, which takes place on Thursday, March 12, 2020, at the University of Southern California. Speakers Tia Brown McNair and Kaiwipuni Lipe will discuss "Advancing Racial Equity through Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) Campus Centers." Learn More

New Book:Higher Education Administration for Social Justice and Equity A new book, edited by the Pullias Center's Adrianna Kezar and Julie Posselt, empowers all administrators in higher education to engage in their work with a clear commitment to justice, sensitivity to power and privilege, and capacity to facilitate equitable outcomes. Grounding administration for social justice as a matter of daily work, Higher Education Administration translates abstract concepts and theory into the work of hiring, socialization, budgeting, and decision-making. Contributed chapters by renowned scholars and current practitioners cover a range of topics from human resources to priority setting through the lens equity and justice. A feature story on our website includes more information about the book and insights from editors Kezar and Posselt, plus a code to get insider pricing. Read the Story

Math Equity Convening Registration Now Open Get your RSVP in now for the December 11th Math Equity Convening at the University of Southern California's University Park campus and online. Dr. Tatiana Melguizo and Dr. Federick Ngo will share the results of a project that measures the equity costs of college readiness standards misalignment in community colleges. Visit Event Page

Delphi Award Case Studies Highlight Innovative Adjunct Support Case studies highlighting the Delphi Award-winning projects from Penn State University and Santa Monica College have been posted to the center's website. The projects were selected for their innovative approaches to support adjunct, contingent, and non-tenure-track faculty (NTTF) in promoting student success. The case studies can serve as a roadmap for implementing similar changes at other colleges and universities. Read the Case Studies

Pullias in the Media The Project and People Making News The Washington Post and The Hechinger Report ran a story about the trend towards women outnumbering men in higher education featuring a quote from the Pullias Center's Adrian Huerta The Chronicle of Higher Education and Penn State News ran feature stories on Penn State University's Delphi Award-winning project and team

Dr. Espinosa's Recommended Reads 4 Things to Add to Your Reading List from our Guest Editor Park, J. J. (2019, August 21). An uneven playing field: The complex educational experiences of Asian Americans. Retrieved from https://www.higheredtoday.org/2019/08/21/uneven-playing-field-complex-educational-experiences-asian-americans/.   Posselt, J. R. (2018). Inside Graduate Admissions: Merit, Diversity, and Faculty Gatekeeping. Harvard University Press. ( link )    American Council on Education (2019, October 10). The Harvard admissions case: Reactions to the judge's ruling (Issue Brief). Retrieved from https://www.acenet.edu/Documents/Issue-Brief-Harvard-admissions-decision.pdf   Clinedinst, M. (2019). State of college admission . National Association for College Admission Counceling. Retrieved from https://www.nacacnet.org/globalassets/documents/publications/research/2018_soca/soca2019_all.pdf

Quick Takes Additional Pullias Center News Meet our researchers at ASHE 2019 in Portland, Oregon, November 13 through 16. The California Consortium for Inclusive Doctoral Education (C-CIDE) held a series of workshops with the aim of improving how doctoral programs select and serve the next generation of scientists and engineers. Adrianna Kezar presented at "Constructing Higher Education for the Global Era: Proving Student Competence" conference in Beijing in October, as part of a push to expand The Pullias Center's reach to more international audiences and inform our work through more international dialogs.

The Pullias Center Newsletter will take a break for the rest of 2019 and will be back in January 2020 to kick off the center's 25th year!

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