Few Blacks in Top Administrative Posts at the University of Virginia

Among the nation’s highest-ranked educational institutions, the University of Virginia has been a leader in student and faculty diversity. But a new report by William B. Harvey, the university’s vice president for diversity and equity, says UVA has done a poor job in bringing blacks into top administrative positions.

According to the report, of the 436 top administrators at the University of Virginia, only 28, or 6.4 percent, are black. The university’s medical school has done the best job. There, four of the 35 top administrators are black.

According to the American Council on Education, blacks make up 9.7 percent of all full-time college administrators nationwide.

There is some hope that the situation will improve in the months ahead. The University of Virginia currently has eight openings for senior-level management positions. Black candidates are among the four finalists for the position of dean at the nursing and law schools as well as at the College of Arts and Sciences. There is also a black finalist in the search to fill an opening for vice president for research.

Copyright © 2008. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.