High Achieving African American Students and the College Choice Process: Applying Critical Race Theory

By critically examining the legal, institutional, and social factors that prohibit or promote students’ college choices, this Volume undermines the notion that African American students and their families are opposed to formal education, and reveals structural barriers which they face in accessing elite institutions.

For African American students, unequal education is rooted in the history in the legacy of slavery and of the history of institutional and structural racism in United States. The long legacy of racism in education cannot be dismissed when reflecting on the college choice experiences of African American students made today. Authors uniquely apply Critical Race Theory (CRT) to analyse the college selection process of high achieving African American students and, highlight the similarities and differences within an impressive group of students, therefore challenging the deficit notions of African American students as perpetual under-achievers. They also show that contrary to the general assumption, African American parents are inclined towards providing their sons and daughters higher education at the elite institutes of US. The decision is often influenced by analysis of factors including the allocation of school resources, parental attitudes, university recruitment, campus outreach, and affordability. The issues of discrimination on the grounds of race, class, and gender often plays a vital role in decision making process.

This text will be of great interest to graduate and postgraduate students, researchers, academics, professionals and policy makers in the field of Race & Ethnicity in Higher Education, Sociology of Education, Equality & Human Rights, and African American Studies.