...But A Different Story at the National Academy of Sciences

Each year the prestigious National Academy of Sciences selects new members who in the academy’s judgment have made the greatest contribution to scientific research, including social science research. Election to the academy is an extraordinary honor and is often seen as the pinnacle of a scholar’s career.

This past week the National Academy of Sciences announced the election of 72 new members. While the academy does not release statistics on the racial makeup of new or existing members, a JBHE analysis of the list of new members found not one African American among the inductees.

JBHE research finds that there are only seven blacks, or 0.3 percent, among the 2,013 active members of the National Academy of Sciences.

Copyright © 2006. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.