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The student population in US higher education is more diverse than ever. According to a new report by the American Council on Education, Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education: A Status Report, students of color made up just 29.6 percent of the undergraduate student population in 1996, increasing to 45.2 percent in 2016. The share of graduate students of color increased from 20.8 to 32.0 percent in the same time period. However, despite these gains, many areas of higher education continue to underserve and underrepresent students of color. With more than two hundred indicators, the report disaggregates student enrollment, persistence, and completion rates as well as economic indicators like borrowing, debt, and unemployment after graduation. The report also examines the racial and ethnic makeup of full-time faculty, staff, and administrators, finding that these positions of power in the academy remain "predominantly White."
A Diversifying Student Population
* Since 1997, the US population has grown more and more diverse. In 2017, the population was 61 percent White, 18 percent Hispanic, 12.3 percent Black, 5.7 percent Asian, 1.9 percent one or more race, 0.7 percent American Indian or Alaska Native, and 0.3 percent Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander.
* Among the total population of "traditional" college-age students (eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds), 40.9 percent were enrolled in college in 2016 compared with 35.5 percent in 1996.
* A big part of the increasing diversity in higher education is "a growing Hispanic population that is seeking...