A couple staggering stats:
- About one-third of all college students are first generation.
- Forty-three percent of millennials are of color, and deal on a daily basis with the challenges of white privilege.
- Twenty-six percent of undergraduates are raising dependent children.
- One in five female students will be sexually assaulted in college.
- Seventy percent of college students have student debt. Nationwide, that adds up to $1.2 trillion—a per-student average of $29,000.
- Student debt is higher for black students than white students. In 2013, 42% of black families carried student loan debt, compared to 28% of white families.
- Forty percent of the nation’s unemployed are millennials.
- Hate crimes on campuses are on the rise, and over 11% of all hate crimes in 2009 took place on college campuses.
- By the age of 23, nearly half of black males and 40% of white males have been arrested.
- Despite recruiting efforts to draw a diverse student body, students of color often find a lack of inclusion and support once they arrive. From offensive Halloween garb to KKK graffiti, these students often encounter unwelcoming, or even hostile, environments. This is especially true at schools located outside of urban areas.
- Black and Hispanic students have lower graduation rates than whites. In 2005, 62% of whites got a degree within six years, versus 40% of blacks and 51% of Hispanics.
- Seventy-nine percent of faculty are white, a statistic that,according to research, can negatively influence the academic success of nonwhite students.
- College-educated black students are also disproportionately unemployed. In 2013, 12.4% of black graduates were unemployed, compared to 4.9% of whites.
Thanks, +Zuhair Khan
