Recruiting, Retaining, and Engaging African-American Males at Selective Public Research Universities

Challenges and Opportunities in Academics and Sports

Edited by:
Louis A. Castenel Ph.D., University of Georgia
Tarek C. Grantham, University of Georgia
Billy J. Hawkins, University of Houston

A volume in the series: Contemporary Perspectives on Access, Equity, and Achievement. Editor(s): Chance W. Lewis, University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Published 2018

A problematic, yet uncommon, assumption among many higher education researchers is that recruitment, retention, and engagement of African-American males is relatively similar and stable across all majority White colleges and universities. In fact, the harsh reality is that selective public research universities (SPRUs) have distinctive academic cultures that increase the difficulty of diversifying their faculty and student populations. This book will discuss how traditions and elitist assumptions make it very difficult to recruit, retain, and engage African-American males.

The authors will examine these issues from multiple perspectives in three sections that highlight research, policies and practices impacting the experiences of African American males, including Pre-Collegiate Preparation, African American Male Student Athletes, and Undergraduate and Graduate Considerations for African American Male Initiatives.

CONTENTS
Acknowledgments. Introduction, Louis A. Castenell, Tarek C. Grantham, Billy J. Hawkins. SECTION I PRE-COLLEGIATE PREPARATION OF AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES, Louis A. Castenell, Tarek Grantham, Marques Dexter and Quincy Brewington. The Cultural Collusion and Collision in the Evolution of Highly Selective Universities: A Historical Overview of SPRUs at the American Public’s Expense, Louis Castenell and Quincy Brewington. African American Males’ Academic Preparation in K-12 Settings for Highly Selective Universities, Natoya Hill Haskins and Kelley Olds. Desegregating the University System of Georgia (USG) and Establishing the African American Male Initiative at the University of Georgia (UGA): From USG Shame to UGA GAAME, Tarek Grantham, Louis Castenell, Quincy Brewington and Marques Dexter. Project Gentlemen on the move: A model for creating a pipeline of African American male scholars, Deryl Bailey, Mary Bradbury Bailey, and Bobby Gueh. SECTION II OVERVIEW – AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE STUDENT ATHLETES AT SELECT PUBLIC RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES, Billy Hawkins and Marques Dexter. College Athletics: Access and opportunity for Black Male Athletes at Selective Research Universities, Billy Hawkins and Akuoma C. Nwadike. Changing the Game: When Black Professors Engage Black Athletes, Louis Harrison Jr, Alvin Logan, Devin Walker, and Leonard Moore. African American Student Athletes and Engagement in the College Student Experience, Joy Gayles and Eddie Comeaux. Deconstructing “Gods and Monsters”: Black Men, Manhood, and College Athletics, T. Elon Dancy II and Larry Birdine. When the Cheers Fade: Rethinking College Transitions for Black Male Student-Athletes and Reframing Success, Eugene T. Parker, Jarvis A. McCowin, Nicholas Katopol, Tevin Robbins, Malik S. Henfield and Anthony Ferguson. Crouching Talents, Hidden Gifts: The Dualism of Academic Excellence and Athletic Development for African American, Gifted Student-Athletes at Selective Public Research Universities, Kristina Henry Collins and Andre Mark Perry. SECTION III OVERVIEW – UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE CONSIDERATIONS FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE INITIATIVES, Tarek Grantham, Louis A. Castenell, Marques Dexter and Quincy Brewington. We are AAMRI’: Redefining Black male excellence at The University of Texas at Austin, Darren D. Kelly, Martin P. Smith, and Cameron McCoy. African American Male Initiatives: Creating Cultures of Inclusion and Climates of Success at Select Public Research Universities, Zoe Johnson. African American Males in TRIO Programs, Daniel Isaiah Thompson. Using an Anti-deficit Achievement Approach to Examine a Black Male College Student’s Pursuit of a Career in Computer Science, Darris R. Means and Raphael D. Coleman. Shades of Black: Black Male Law School Enrollment by Ethnic Status, Daryl McAdoo, Chantel Jones, and Walter R. Allen.