Black Enrollments on the Rise at the University of Colorado

In recent years the University of Colorado at Boulder has been plagued by a number of incidents of racial hate. As a result, the number of blacks in the first-year class at the university was 66 in both 2004 and 2005. Officials at the university took steps to increase black enrollments. University president Hank Brown went to black churches in Denver to recruit students. African-American students at the university were employed to write letters to prospective black students to encourage them to apply to the university. Officials at the university met with local community and professional groups to discuss ways in which black students could be encouraged to apply.

The efforts seem to be bearing fruit. There are 102 black freshmen on campus this year, up 55 percent from two years ago and up 24 percent from a year ago.

Copyright © 2007. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.