The Poor Performance of Black Students at California Community Colleges

Data from the Community College System of California shows that during the spring 2010 semester there were more than 120,000 black students enrolled at the state’s 115 community colleges.

But a new report from the Institute for Higher Education Leadership & Policy at California State University at Sacramento finds that black students at California community colleges are not making good progress in completing their academic programs.

The study found that only 17 percent of black students entering these colleges had completed a college-level mathematics course within two years. Only 26 percent of entering black students completed a college-level English course within two years. Only 16 percent of entering black students earned 20 college credits within their first year. The study showed that 47 percent of black students were still enrolled a year later and just 8 percent of black students who entered California community colleges had earned an associate’s degree within six years.

The report, entitled Divided We Fall: Improving Completion and Closing Racial Gaps in California’s Community Colleges, can be accessed by clicking here.

Copyright © 2010. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.