Faculty Diversity and Student Success Go Hand in Hand, so Why Are University Faculties so White?

Faculty diversity plays a key role in college student completion and can have a major impact on students' sense of belonging, retention rates, and persistence. This report examines faculty diversity relative to student diversity, as well as hiring equity, tenure equity, and changes in faculty representation over time for Black and Latino faculty at public, four-year institutions, and highlights colleges and universities that are making progress on diversifying their faculties and those that have more work to do. The findings show that Black and Latino faculty are severely underrepresented at most public, four-year colleges and universities. When Black and Latino faculty are compared against student enrollment in 2020, it is found that more than half (57%) the institutions had failing grades for Black faculty diversity, while nearly four out of five (80%) had F grades for Latino faculty diversity. If institutions are going to increase faculty diversity, they will need to examine their hiring and retention practices, improve campus racial climates, and make resources available to faculty members of color, so they can build and hone their skills and find community. This report offers a variety of other recommendations for institutional leaders, advocates, and federal and state policymakers on building faculty diversity via funding and strategic planning and campus climate initiatives.