Symposium (2):
Does the Racial Identity of Faculty Predict the Six-Year Graduation Rates among Black, Latinx, and Pell Grant Students?
Justin Lamar Bryant
Department of Curriculum; Prairie View A&M University, Texas, USA
The present mood hovering over the American higher education system now expects post-secondary institutions to graduate students within a reasonable time. There is also an expectation of colleges and universities to equip students with the competencies necessary to meet the nation’s labor demand. The last several decades witnessed an increase in college attendance, but this uptick in enrollment failed to translate in college completion rates. Unfortunately, the United States only made incremental improvement in this effort, and the nation continues to fall in the global ranking for educating its citizens. Purpose: This proposed study seeks to answer the following research questions: (1) When disaggregating by student demographic factors, does Minority Serving Status (MSI) predict the six-year graduation rates among Black, Latinx, and Pell Grant students; (2) when disaggregating by student demographic factors, does the racial identity of faculty predict the six-year graduation rates among Black, Latinx, and Pell Grant students; and (3) when disaggregating by student demographic factors, which institutional expenditures and funding sources predict the four-, six-, eight-, and ten-year graduation rates among Black, Latinx and Pell Grant students? Methods: Using panel data across ten years (2009 to 2019), this study utilized an OLS regression to perform this analysis.
Short Biography
Dr. Justin Lamar Bryant is an Assistant Professor of Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, and also serves as an affiliate faculty in the Division of Social Sciences teaching history, at Prairie View A&M University. Bryant’s research primarily focuses on improving the rates of persistence, retention, and completion for traditionally underrepresented students. His research also examines Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), particularly, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), as well as assessing strategies to actualize diversity, equity and inclusion in education. Bryant earned his Bachelor of Arts (BA) in History with a minor in Spanish from Morehouse College. He later earned his Master of Arts (MA) in History from Georgia Southern University followed by his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Higher Education Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Houston.
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