Historically Black colleges and the dilemma of desegregation: a reassessment

A study was carried out to reassess the changes in Black representation and segregation in institutions of higher education in 1986 as compared to 1976. The 'index of dissimilarity' was used to measure segregation, and the 'representation ratio' to measure Black representation. The findings revealed that segregation had decreased in 42 states from 44.1% in 1976 to 38.7% in 1986. Black representation in institutes of higher education declined between 1976 and 1986. The decline, however, was not related to the existence of historically Black institutions in a state.