*** NEWS RELEASE ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Gary Orfield
(310) 267-5562
September 29, 2008
Report From Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles at UCLA Praises
Kentucky’s Success in Diversifying its Colleges
Findings Outlines Challenges Ahead
LOS ANGELES ¬– The Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles, one ofthe nation's leading research centers on issues of civil rights and racial inequality, yesterday presented its report, "Building on Success," to theKentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) in Lexington. Thiscomprehensive study of equity in the entire Kentucky system not only assessesthe state’s progress under plans developed to comply with federal civilrights law over the past 26 years, but also recommends strategies for the nextgeneration. The Council, which governs the state’s higher education system,discussed the report and directed its Committee for Educational Opportunity toprepare a new plan by early 2009.This independent assessment of Kentucky’s public colleges and universities by scholars from across the country concluded that the state had made majorprogress. The 168-page report, "Building on Success," documented the state’s progress in providing growing access for black students to its historicallywhite institutions at all levels -- an historic accomplishment -- from community college to doctoral studies. Analysis of survey data from the state’s campuses showed that, in general, African American students feel comfortable and welcome on their campuses. The survey respondents indicated,however, that rich discussion of diversity, much more likely to occur on multiracial campuses, was lagging. The study found that more work was needed assome commitments had not yet been realized. In particular, the state needs totake a broader view in its future diversity planning, one that would build onthe momentum for African American access, and include the state’s rapidlygrowing Hispanic community, as well as, perhaps, whites from highlyimpoverished areas. Two years ago the CPE commissioned the assessment and granted the Civil RightsProject, when it was still at Harvard, full access to data from the Kentuckycampuses and to the system’s leaders. Professor Gary Orfield, who directedthe team of researchers, comments: “The state’s leaders took a bold andunusual risk in giving us unrestricted access to the system without any controlof the final report. We think they have created a positive example for higher education systems across the country and we hope that this report will help carry their accomplishments to the next level in order to realize the state’svery ambitious goal of doubling its number of college graduates. This is something that can only be done if they fully develop the talents of studentsfrom groups that were once excluded or neglected.” Orfield then challengedother states to follow Kentucky’s steps and prepare for the next generation.Recommendations for Improvement:The recommendations for improvement focus on severe leakages in the pipeline ofopportunity in the state: a high dropout rate from high school; a relativelylow rate of enrollment in college coming out of high school; a weak transferrate from community college to four-year campuses; students who take longer tograduate, and graduate at lower numbers from the four year campuses, comparedto national averages. All of these transition points tend to pose risksparticularly for minority students. The study also finds that the state’s commitments to transform it’shistorically black campus, Kentucky State University, have not been yet beenfulfilled after more than 25 years of plans. KSU is still very small comparedto the other campuses, attracts mostly undergraduates with weak academicbackgrounds in need of serious remediation, and has far to go in producing astrong graduation rate for the students it enrolls. In fact, 87 percent ofKentucky’s black college graduates hail from historically white institutions. The report goes on to say that in spite of its status as a vital resource, KSUhas not been upgraded sufficiently to become genuinely competitive."Building on Success" concludes that the state monitoring has been criticallyimportant to the success of the effort to date and recommends ways in which theprocess could be improved -- by more collaboration between state officials andcampus leaders and by encouraging researchers on campuses to carefully evaluatetheir programs to support diversity and make recommendations for improvingthem. The report also advocates that the Kentucky Council on Higher Educationcontinue to oversee statewide progress and monitor the performance of variousinstitutions, though in a more collaborative manner. Engaging researchers atthe eight public universities not only will develop knowledge through studiesof their campus approaches and plans, but also will produce strong and credibleresearch for better policy in Kentucky. The full text of the report will be available at:www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu
About the Civil Rights Project at UCLA
Founded in 1996 by former Harvard professors Gary Orfield and Christopher EdleyJr., the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles is now co-directed byOrfield and Patricia Gándara, professors at UCLA. Its mission is to create anew generation of research in social science and law on the critical issues ofcivil rights and equal opportunity for racial and ethnic groups in the UnitedStates. It has commissioned more than 400 studies, published 14 books andissued numerous reports from authors at universities and research centersacross the country. The Supreme Court, in its 2003 Grutter v. Bollingerdecision, cited the Civil Rights Project's research.###
Showing posts with label Kentucky. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kentucky. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Supreme Court Case Could Expose Employers to More Age Bias Trials
Workforce Management
January 10, 2008
Deputy sheriffs are exposed to danger every day on the job. But in Kentucky, if they get shot and put out of work, the amount of benefits they can receive depends on when in their career the incident occurs.
Under Kentucky law, people who work in hazardous public service occupations can retire after 20 years of service or when they’re 55—as long as they’ve worked at least five years by that time.
But safety officers are ineligible for disability payments if they are 55 or older because they already qualify for retirement benefits. Younger colleagues who are injured can receive disability until they reach retirement age.
This situation produced a lawsuit by a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department employee, Charles Lickteig, who was disabled at age 61 after 18 years of service and was denied disability benefits.
Lickteig filed an age discrimination suit with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, asserting that younger workers are treated better in the Kentucky system.
A federal district court ruled in 2003 that Kentucky did not discriminate based on age. But the full 6th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision, 10-4, finding that Kentucky excludes workers from disability benefits because of their age. The state appealed to the Supreme Court.
In an oral argument before the high court on Wednesday, January 9, Robert Klausner, an attorney for Kentucky Retirement Systems, said that state policy does not violate the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. It simply fills in the gap between the time a younger employee is hurt and retirement.
“It’s about retirement eligibility, not about age,” Klausner said. “What this case is about … is being fair without regard to age.”
Malcolm Stewart, an assistant to the solicitor general who is representing the EEOC, argued that the Kentucky program is unfair to employees already working beyond retirement age.
“There is no reason to think that the older people … as a group will have fewer years in the line of fire than younger people,” Stewart said. “What [Kentucky] can’t do is use age as a proxy, as the basis for how many years that person would have worked if he or she had not been disabled.” [To read the entire article, go to: http://www.workforce.com/section/00/article/25/30/77.html]
January 10, 2008
Deputy sheriffs are exposed to danger every day on the job. But in Kentucky, if they get shot and put out of work, the amount of benefits they can receive depends on when in their career the incident occurs.
Under Kentucky law, people who work in hazardous public service occupations can retire after 20 years of service or when they’re 55—as long as they’ve worked at least five years by that time.
But safety officers are ineligible for disability payments if they are 55 or older because they already qualify for retirement benefits. Younger colleagues who are injured can receive disability until they reach retirement age.
This situation produced a lawsuit by a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department employee, Charles Lickteig, who was disabled at age 61 after 18 years of service and was denied disability benefits.
Lickteig filed an age discrimination suit with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, asserting that younger workers are treated better in the Kentucky system.
A federal district court ruled in 2003 that Kentucky did not discriminate based on age. But the full 6th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision, 10-4, finding that Kentucky excludes workers from disability benefits because of their age. The state appealed to the Supreme Court.
In an oral argument before the high court on Wednesday, January 9, Robert Klausner, an attorney for Kentucky Retirement Systems, said that state policy does not violate the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. It simply fills in the gap between the time a younger employee is hurt and retirement.
“It’s about retirement eligibility, not about age,” Klausner said. “What this case is about … is being fair without regard to age.”
Malcolm Stewart, an assistant to the solicitor general who is representing the EEOC, argued that the Kentucky program is unfair to employees already working beyond retirement age.
“There is no reason to think that the older people … as a group will have fewer years in the line of fire than younger people,” Stewart said. “What [Kentucky] can’t do is use age as a proxy, as the basis for how many years that person would have worked if he or she had not been disabled.” [To read the entire article, go to: http://www.workforce.com/section/00/article/25/30/77.html]
Friday, August 31, 2007
U of L, UK seek higher diversity
Schools compete for all minorities
By Nancy C. Rodriguez
nrodriguez@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
Nat Irvin II was a professor at Wake Forest University for 10 years before coming to the University of Louisville this year.
"The thing that really impressed me was the leadership of the institution," said Irvin, the Strickler Executive-in-Residence Professor of Management in the College of Business. "It was a good fit for me."
Irvin's hiring -- and that of 13 other African-American professors -- has helped U of L continue its five-year trend of increasing diversity among its roughly 1,200-member faculty.
Since 2002-03 the university has seen the number of full-time black members grow from 61 to 98.
They now account for more than 7 percent of the entire faculty, according to preliminary numbers made available this week.
The university also has hired 26 Asian and five Hispanic professors.
"We feel really very blessed that so many people have wanted to come here, because they contribute a lot to our community," said U of L Provost Shirley Willihnganz.
University of Kentucky officials also are projecting an increase of 10 African-American professors -- the largest number of hires since the 2002-03 school year.
That brings the number of blacks among the 2,200 faculty members to 81 -- more than 3 percent.
The university also hired five Hispanic faculty members this year, bringing the total to 33.
The number of Asian faculty -- which was 194 last year -- was not available.
"The goal always is to show as much diversity as we can across the board. ... We're committed to doing so," said UK Provost Kumble Subbaswamy.
Under Kentucky's equal opportunity plan and an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, the state's eight public universities and 16 community colleges must show that they are making progress in increasing their numbers of African-American students, faculty and staff.
Each institution has its own objective.
For example, U of L's is to have at least 7 percent black faculty; UK's is 3 percent.
Both say that they met their goals.
All the universities are compiling final numbers on minority faculty members, which will be forwarded to the Council on Post-Secondary Education for a report in January.
Failing to make progress in diversifying the faculty -- and in other areas as well, including enrollment -- can lead to state restrictions in implementing new academic programs.
The universities are judged on eight areas pertaining to diversity, and the community college system is judged on four.
U of L was the only university to show progress in all eight areas this past January, according to state officials.
[To read the entire article, go to: http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070830/NEWS01/708300422/1008 ]
By Nancy C. Rodriguez
nrodriguez@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
Nat Irvin II was a professor at Wake Forest University for 10 years before coming to the University of Louisville this year.
"The thing that really impressed me was the leadership of the institution," said Irvin, the Strickler Executive-in-Residence Professor of Management in the College of Business. "It was a good fit for me."
Irvin's hiring -- and that of 13 other African-American professors -- has helped U of L continue its five-year trend of increasing diversity among its roughly 1,200-member faculty.
Since 2002-03 the university has seen the number of full-time black members grow from 61 to 98.
They now account for more than 7 percent of the entire faculty, according to preliminary numbers made available this week.
The university also has hired 26 Asian and five Hispanic professors.
"We feel really very blessed that so many people have wanted to come here, because they contribute a lot to our community," said U of L Provost Shirley Willihnganz.
University of Kentucky officials also are projecting an increase of 10 African-American professors -- the largest number of hires since the 2002-03 school year.
That brings the number of blacks among the 2,200 faculty members to 81 -- more than 3 percent.
The university also hired five Hispanic faculty members this year, bringing the total to 33.
The number of Asian faculty -- which was 194 last year -- was not available.
"The goal always is to show as much diversity as we can across the board. ... We're committed to doing so," said UK Provost Kumble Subbaswamy.
Under Kentucky's equal opportunity plan and an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, the state's eight public universities and 16 community colleges must show that they are making progress in increasing their numbers of African-American students, faculty and staff.
Each institution has its own objective.
For example, U of L's is to have at least 7 percent black faculty; UK's is 3 percent.
Both say that they met their goals.
All the universities are compiling final numbers on minority faculty members, which will be forwarded to the Council on Post-Secondary Education for a report in January.
Failing to make progress in diversifying the faculty -- and in other areas as well, including enrollment -- can lead to state restrictions in implementing new academic programs.
The universities are judged on eight areas pertaining to diversity, and the community college system is judged on four.
U of L was the only university to show progress in all eight areas this past January, according to state officials.
[To read the entire article, go to: http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070830/NEWS01/708300422/1008 ]
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