Cameron Johnson 1

Malaka Friedman

ENG 101

2/4/19

African American First-Years in Predominantly White Colleges

In 1823 the first documented African

American person to graduate college was Alexander

Twilight. Later in the 19th century the 13th

amendment was added to the constitution,

eliminating the most severe obstacle to African

American education, slavery. A full century later, in

the 1960’s, the peak of the civil rights movement,

which was a significant organized effort by the

African American community to achieve equal rights for all races and to eliminate

institutionalized racism, occurred. The civil rights movement succeeded and issued in

an era of African American progress, which saw a massive influx in blacks pursuing

higher education.

These African Americans had to enter predominantly white institutions and face

additional hardships in comparison to the majority. Even now, 50 years later, despite

there being much lower racial tensions nationwide compared to the past, African

Americans still have very different struggles in colleges with a white majority. One of the

most obvious differences between an African American and a white student in a

predominantly white institution is the fact that there aren’t many people on campus that

look like you, especially in big colleges.

 2

As the picture to the left shows, in my

college, North Carolina State University,

only 30% of the first-year students

identify as non-white (NCSU), with only

260 total black students, and that

number isn’t even close to the worst in

Source: North Carolina State University the country. The diversity ratio at NC State is

reflected in many classes. For my calculus 1 course, a requirement for my business

major, there were about 100 students total taking the class, however, looking around I

only saw three African Americans including myself. And I’m not alone in this, from an

interview I conducted with my older brother, Christian Johnson who is a former NC

State student, who had similar experiences, stating that in the past he’s been “the only

black male in the class.” He admitted that the experience is “jarring” and can be

“intimidating.” However, he stated that it can be a motivation for the class making “you

want to succeed better knowing that you’ve

got all eyes on you.” I’ve felt the exact same

way in my case, where instead of being

intimidated by the lack of blacks in the

class, I’ve felt a bigger drive to succeed.

Interestingly, he added that in certain

classes it can also put even more pressure

on you then you have already, because you inadvertently “become the spokesperson for

your whole race.” For example, someone could ask you a politically oriented question,
 3

and that person would mistakenly think ‘so this is how all black people think about this

topic.’ and not just think that is how you as an individual think.

Another struggle that can come from being a minority in a predominantly white

school is that there may feel pressured in social situations. Whether you pursue a club or

try to go to an outing, you may be isolated in trying to socialize with others. For many,

it’s a completely different culture that comes with being in a white majority university,

and it takes time to acclimate to these kinds of environment changes. Personally, I have

not had this issue because growing up in the suburbs of Charlotte, North Carolina, both

the middle school and high schools

that I attended were predominantly

white, so I’ve been accustomed to

this kind of culture before. However,

many that haven’t been in this

situation before struggle to fit into

clubs and other group activities due

to their differences. While me and my brother may have come from predominantly

white neighborhoods and schools, many of the African American community in these

colleges have come from predominantly black neighborhoods. Having to go through that

adjustment is a challenge that the majority does not have to face and contributes to the

lower graduation rate of African Americans (Woldoff, 4).

While the social adjustment is a big obstacle in the way of our educational

success, finding your fellow African Americans going through this same ordeal is a way

to get through it. When African Americans are socially connected, it motivates us to
 4

succeed and takes a lot of the stress from being a minority away (Simmons, 4). You learn

that you’re not going through this by yourself, and you find comradery in these peers.

Getting to know people in college is a good way to keep you on track to graduate for

every student no matter what their group is, and African Americans are no exception.

However, just getting to know people is a challenge in itself. It’s a big misconception

among people who are in the majority that the people in the minority all know each

other, that since there’s not many of them from a relative perspective they’re all on good

terms already (Johnson). I personally, do not know many people of my race on campus.

My friend group is about 80 percent white and 20 percent nonwhite. Something that

would make it easier to find new minority friends on campus would be to pursue clubs

that have good diversity.

A major problem with many predominantly white universities is that they don’t

put in enough effort to get minority students involved in club activities and to make

them feel welcome on campus past the initial application. Almost every predominantly

white university will encourage minorities to enroll, but few will try to give them the

support they need. Getting the minority students involved in club activities has been
 5

shown to have a positive impact on academic persistence (Simmons, 5). As discussed in

the previous paragraph, the more people you have by your side who are going through

your experiences and empathize with you, the less of a burden you have on your back. I

think that my school NC State does a good job with informing African Americans about

clubs and inclusion opportunities. On campus here I haven’t really felt lost at finding

which clubs will have a good black population, since they email me about fifteen times a

week about their activities and operations, despite me not expressing my interest or

willingly signing up onto any kind of list.

Over fifty years after the civil rights movement, where African Americans fought

tooth and nail to allow minorities to end educational segregation, minorities still

struggle. While there are certainly less predominantly white institutions now compared

to back then due to those efforts, many still thrive. Minorities have unique experiences

and difficulties in these colleges that are different then what other students that are the

majority will have. These differences include a pressure on you to represent your race,

finding extra comfort and familiarity in your same race, and a difficulty in finding a

community that you belong in. Not many people who are a part of the majority in these

colleges are aware of the difficulties African Americans face when they come to be a part
 6

of them. We’re here in college for our future aspirations and to succeed, just like

everyone else at a predominantly white university.

 7

Bibliography

Johnson, Christian. Personal interview. 30 Jan. 2019.

“NCSU First Year Facts.” NCSU Admissions Profile, North Carolina State University, 10

Sept. 2018, admissions.ncsu.edu/wp-

content/uploads/sites/8/2018/09/UGA_08172018_fyf-2018_CB_006.pdf.

Simmons, Lamont D. “Beyond Matriculation: Examining Factors That Contribute to

African American Male Persistence at a Predominantly White Institution.” Journal of

Research in Crime and Delinquency, 14 June 2017,

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1521025117714163.

Woldoff, Rachael A., et al. “Black Collegiens at a Predominantly White Institution:

Toward a Place-Based Understanding of Black Students' Adjustment to College.”

Journal of Black Studies, vol. 42, no. 7, 2011, pp. 1047–1079. JSTOR,

www.jstor.org/stable/41304573.