RACIAL INEQUITIES IN COLLEGE SPORTS

NEW REPORT ON RACIAL INEQUITIES IN COLLEGE SPORTS A point of pride for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is that student-athletes graduate at higher rates than do undergraduates who are not members of intercollegiate sports teams. This is true in the aggregate, but not for one particular population that disproportionately comprises football and men's basketball teams at NCAA Division I institutions: Black male student-athletes. The purpose of this report is to make transparent racial inequities that disadvantage Black undergraduate men in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big East Conference, Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac 12 Conference, and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). These are the six major NCAA Division I conferences whose member institutions routinely win football and basketball championships, play in multimillion-dollar bowl games and the annual basketball championship tournament, and produce the largest share of Heisman trophy winners. Data from the NCAA and the U.S. Department of Education are presented for the 76 institutional members of these six athletic conferences. Specifically, the authors offer a four-year analysis of Black men's representation on football and basketball teams versus their representation in the undergraduate student body on each campus. They also compare Black male student-athletes' six-year graduation rates (across four cohorts) to student-athletes overall, undergraduate students overall, and Black undergraduate men overall at each institution. The report begins with a summary of previously published studies on Black male student-athletes and details about the research methods. The authors then present lists of winners and losers (colleges and universities with exceptionally high and low statistical indicators of equity for Black male student-athletes). Statistics are also furnished for each individual college/university in the six athletic conferences. The report concludes with recommendations for the NCAA and commissioners of the six major sports conferences, college and university leaders, coaches and athletics directors, journalists, and Black male student-athletes and their families. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS A PDF OF THE REPORT       The Center for the Study of Race and Equity in Education unites University of Pennsylvania scholars who do research on race and important topics pertaining to equity in education. Principally, the Center aims to publish cutting-edge implications for education policy and practice, with an explicit focus on improving equity in P-12 schools, colleges and universities, and social contexts that influence educational outcomes.

www.gse.upenn.edu/equity