UNM attempts to reverse trend of declining black student numbers

news@dailylobo.com

UNM has revamped efforts to increase its black student population.
In the last 25 years the black student population at UNM has hovered around 2.8 to 3 percent of the overall student population, with no real efforts of targeted recruiting in place, said Scott Carreathers, director of African American Student Services.

Carreathers added that only about half of all black students on campus use AASS, which he said has made outreach and retention for black students extremely difficult.

In 2011 these concerns were what led faculty and staff, including Carreathers, to meet with then-UNM President David Schmidly to create the African American/Black Climate Review Report. This initiative attempted to address the issues and concerns of UNM’s African-American/black faculty, staff, students and community members.

Almost two years after the initiative began, however, the black student population at UNM has declined. Currently, black students make up 2.46 percent of the overall student population, down from the purported average.

The University remains hopeful that these numbers will increase within the next three to five years.

To help accomplish this goal, AASS partnered up with Recruitment Services and hired Jamila Clayton as its targeted recruiter in August. Clayton, an Albuquerque native, last worked as the main general recruiter at the University of Phoenix and targeted thousands of students for the school.

“I want to help African-American students because sometimes they may not know all the information to get into college or they might be first-generation college students that may not have all the resources,” Clayton said. “That’s what I really love about the position that made me want to apply for it.”

Clayton began by targeting Albuquerque high schools with high African American populations. With the help of the Black Student Union at UNM, she was able to reach out to all public high schools in Albuquerque, she said.

Clayton said she knows of about 40 African-American churches where she is able to target black students whom she may not otherwise be able to find. In addition to recruiting in the city, Clayton also targets smaller New Mexico towns with larger black populations such as Clovis, Alamogordo and Hobbs.

As for out-of-state recruitment, Clayton said she and Carreathers are looking into Texas, California, Atlanta and New York City’s Harlem Academy.

A Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Survey, aiming to continue the work of the 2011 report, will be launched next month and administered by California-based consulting firm Halualani and Associates. The Division for Equity and Inclusion, in collaboration with the Offices of the President and the Provost, is coordinating the project.