Blacks and Women in Public Higher Education

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we analyze the political and socioeconomic factors that may be associated with black and female employment in American public higher education. We develop representation ratios for black females, black males, white females, and white males who serve as full-time faculty members in public higher education institutions in the American states. Our analysis shows that region, in this case the South, provides the best indicator for black female and black male faculty employment in public higher education. The percentage of black state legislators is also associated with black faculty employment. For white women, we found that although they are well represented on faculties, their numbers do not reach their share of the population. None of the variables examined explained their employment as faculty members. Women as a group had a particularly weak presence in state legislatures and continue to have less political power than blacks and white males. We suggest a number of possible avenues for future research to clarify these findings.