Vital Signs: Statistics That Measure the State of Racial Inequality

In each issue, The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education collects statistics bearing on the relative status of blacks and whites, some of which are interesting but not particularly important whereas others are highly relevant and critical to the measurement of racial progress.
(Note: Boldface type suggests items of positive or important change.)

• Percentage of white high school seniors in 2004 who said that helping people in the community was important to them: 38.3%
• Percentage of African-American high school seniors in 2004 who said that helping people in the community was important to them: 54.3% (U.S. Department of Education)

• Percentage of white high school seniors in 2004 who said that working to correct social and economic inequalities was important to them: 15.0%
• Percentage of African-American high school seniors in 2004 who said that working to correct social and economic inequalities was important to them: 31.6% (U.S. Department of Education)

• Percentage of all white Americans ages 3 to 34 who were enrolled in school in 2003: 57.0%
• Percentage of all African Americans ages 3 to 34 who were enrolled in school in 2003: 59.4% (U.S. Department of Education)

• Percentage of white tenth-graders in 2002 who attended high schools with security guards patrolling the hallways: 46.8%
• Percentage of black tenth-graders in 2002 who attended high schools with security guards patrolling the hallways: 71.2% (U.S. Department of Education)

• Percentage of white tenth-graders in 2002 who passed through metal detectors on their way into school: 3.3%
• Percentage of black tenth-graders in 2002 who passed through metal detectors on their way into school: 21.3% (U.S. Department of Education)

• Percentage of white tenth-graders in 2002 who attended high schools that had bars on the windows: 1.7%
• Percentage of black tenth-graders in 2002 who attended high schools that had bars on the windows: 9.3% (U.S. Department of Education)

• Percentage of all white high school students in 2003 who engaged in regular physical activity: 69.0%
• Percentage of all African-American high school students in 2003 who engaged in regular physical activity: 58.8% (The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

• Percentage of all white men in the United States over the age of 18 in 2000 who were incarcerated in jail or prison: 0.7%
• Percentage of all African-American men in the United States over the age of 18 in 2000 who were incarcerated in jail or prison: 5.0% (Bureau of Justice Statistics)

• Percentage of all adult whites in the United States in 2000 who used public transportation to go to work: 3%
• Percentage of all adult blacks in the United States in 2000 who used public transportation to go to work: 14% (U.S. Bureau of the Census)

• Percentage of all white adults over the age of 25 in 2003 who held a graduate degree: 9.8%
• Percentage of all African-American adults over the age of 25 in 2003 who held a graduate degree: 5.3% (U.S. Bureau of the Census)

• Mean earnings in 2003 of a white male who held a professional degree: $140,419
• Mean earnings in 2003 of an African-American male who held a professional degree: $103,155 (U.S. Bureau of the Census)

• Mean earnings in 2003 of a white woman who held a master's degree: $48,388
• Mean earnings in 2003 of an African-American woman who held a master's degree: $49,344 (U.S. Bureau of the Census)

• Percentage of all black children ages 3 to 5 in 1993 who were read to three or more times per week: 66%
• Percentage of all black children ages 3 to 5 in 2001 who were read to three or more times per week: 77% (National Center for Educational Statistics)

• Percentage of all black children ages 3 to 5 in 1993 who were taught letters, words, or numbers three or more times per week: 63%
• Percentage of all black children ages 3 to 5 in 2001 who were taught letters, words, or numbers three or more times per week: 78% (National Center for Educational Statistics)

• Black percentage of all public school principals in the United States in 1982: 12.2%
• Black percentage of all public school principals in the United States in 2004: 16.4% (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

• Black percentage of all public elementary school teachers in the United States in 1982: 12.3%
• Black percentage of all public elementary school teachers in the United States in 2004: 8.7% (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

• Black percentage of all public high school teachers in the United States in 1982: 9.5%
• Black percentage of all public high school teachers in the United States in 2004: 9.2% (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

• Percentage of all black students in the nation's elementary and secondary schools in 2003 who were foreign born: 3.5%
• Percentage of all black undergraduate students in the nation's colleges and universities in 2003 who were foreign born: 15.2%
• Percentage of all black students in the nation's graduate schools in 2003 who were foreign born: 16.5% (U.S. Bureau of the Census)

JBHE Past Vital Statistics

• Issue No. 49 – Autumn 2005