Establishes the office for diversity and educational equity within the state university of New York administration

Summary of specific provisions

Section 1. Short title: "Increasing Diversity in Higher Education Act of 2014".

Section 2. Legislative intent

Section 3. Adds a new paragraph b to subdivision 1 of section 352 of the Education Law to establish the Office for Diversity and Educational Equity, designating a vice chancellor to report directly to the chancel- lor, requiring that funding for the office is included in SUNY's budget proposal to the Governor and the Division of the Budget. The vice chan- cellor shall annually submit a report to the Governor and the Legisla- ture outlining current diversity efforts as they relate to faculty hiring and student enrollment throughout all 64 SUNY campuses. The information must include, but not be limited to: minority enrollment for each campus, minority withdrawals and dismissals per each campus, size of minority freshman class, size of minority graduating classes in four, five, and six years per campus, number of faculty positions filled by each campus, number of minority faculty hired by each campus and their pay scale and title. The report should also include graduate and doctor- ate degrees and total enrollment numbers and graduation rates. All information must be broken down by each campus, gender, and ethnicity.

Section 4 Effective Date

Existing law

None

Justification

The State University of New York (SUNY) has not fully met the growing demand placed on the university system to train the next generation workforce of our state. Simultaneously, the university system is faced with an unprecedented rate of minority and low income student enrollment, high rates of student dropouts, larger number of students completing college after six years or more, and a situation where only 32 out of 100 white students and only 11 of every 100 Hispanic and Afri- can-American students are graduating from college The economic impact on our state and the nation of these dynamics are tremendously negative and threaten the fabric of our civil society and national security.

Over the past decade, the State University of New York has experienced a steady rise in the number of traditionally underrepresented students. By the year 2015, U.S. Census and other data indicate that the majority of New York high school graduates will be from groups that have been

historically underrepresented in SUNY. This demographic shift and a need to train a competitive New York workforce present public higher educa- tion policy makers with a challenge. It is clear that New York must reduce educational inequities faced by minority and low-income students from historically marginalized groups while simultaneously maintaining the highest of educational standards. This huge demographic change must be addressed by policy makers as the State University of New York is not prepared to increase the academic achievement and educational attainment of historically marginalized groups.

Data compiled on college access and success show that New York is doing better than most states for those 25 years of age and older but not for younger, low-income and fastest growing populations. According to 2009 data compiled by the Education Trust, New York's four-year graduation rate for African-Americans is 22% and 17% for Hispanics. The six-year graduation rate more than doubles, however, most of these students will have compromised their academic achievement and dramatically reduced their opportunities to pursue post-secondary education based on their low grades.

The percentage of individuals from traditionally underrepresented groups who are attending SUNY is lower given their numbers in the state popu- lation. Consequently, any initiatives designed to maximize access to affordable, quality education should make special efforts to recruit students from these underserved sectors of the state's population. In its official publications SUNY recognizes its responsibility to employ a workforce and educate a student body that is representative of the state's population. However, SUNY has not been able to recruit and retain senior administrators, faculty, graduate and undergraduate students in sufficient numbers to overcome the long-standing under-re- presentation of minorities.

For example, the Hispanic population of New York grew by 33.1 percent between 1990 and 2000, and made up 15.1 percent of the state's popu- lation. By 2006 Hispanics made up 16.1 percent of the state's popu- lation. Yet, Hispanics accounted for only fi /e percent of the student population in the state-operated/funded campuses of SUNY African Ameri- cans are also underrepresented in SUNY, although their percentages are better than those for Hispanics. In 2006 14,737 African Americans attended SUNY state-operated/funded campuses, and accounted for seven percent of the student population. African-Americans comprised 174 percent of the state's population in 2006. As is the case with Hispan- ics, Blacks are also seriously underrepresented in the SUNY campuses.

The figures on African-Americans and Hispanic student enrollments in SUNY universities and colleges are consistent with the findings published in an Education Trust study of public flagship universities that documents disproportionate under-representation of low-income and minority students. The report observes that flagship public universities are failing to make progress "in better serving the vast breadth of our citizenry." New York State should provide SUNY with the resources to implement effective strategies and best practices, so that it can stand

as an exception to this discouraging national trend in public higher education.

The problem is just as acute within African-American and Hispanic repre- sentation in the faculty ranks of the state operated/funded campus also fails to reflect the composition of the state's population. In the doctoral institutions the percentages for full time Black and Hispanic employees are 14.9 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively For the research university centers the figures are 6.8 percent African-American and 2.4 percent Latino. An analysis of Hispanic faculty employment by a member of the New York State Assembly recently revealed that SUNY lags substantially behind the state's private universities and the City University of New York in the number of Hispanics in its full time professorial ranks.

These figures demonstrate that in order for the State University of New York to address the problems cited above, the university system must engage in a system-wide effort to increase faculty and student diversity and improve its student success rates. In order to begin such work, SUNY must put in place a Vice Chancellor for the Office of Diversity and Educational Equity (ODEE) who will report directly to the SUNY Chancel- lor, Just as major public and private university systems across the United States have hired and provided substantial resources and authori- ty to a chief diversity officer, SUNY must follow the lead of these successful university and college programs in order to remain compet- itive and fulfill its mission of training New York's future workforce, while also improving the economic outlook for all the communities it is entrusted to serve.

Prior legislative history

2013: S.440- Referred to Higher Education 2012: S.59-A-Amend and recommit to Higher Education/A.2335-A -Enacting Clause Stricken 2011 S.59- Reported and Committed to Finance/A,2335- Referred to Higher Education 2009-10: S.3379 - Referred to Higher Education/A.5189 - Referred to Higher Education

Fiscal implications for state and local governments

To be determined.

Effective date

Immediately.