University Studies 114C: Ways of Knowing in the Social Sciences

Jessica Pham, Yunas Jawed, Elizabeth Phan, Hoang Nguyen

October 19, 2011
Group Report on Higher Education in Oregon

Starting in the late 1900s, enrollment in colleges has increased due to other ethnic races
besides Whites. American universities are forming a melting pot that incorporates all ethnic
groups. Jobs now have higher expectations for their employees and will hire those with more
education than those without any. Historically high levels of unemployment....appear to have
served as a stimulant to college enrollment (Fry, 2009). When it is required to have more
education to get a job in the market, people are more motivated to get a degree. Education is
especially important to groups such as Hispanics, Native Americans, African Americans and
Asians, because they are minorities and are classified with little potential and are discriminated
against.
College enrollments have been rising steadily for Hispanics over the past couple
centuries. There are many reasons why the growth has increased greater than usual in recent
years. Increasing Hispanic college enrollment can be attributed to rising Hispanic high school
graduation rates, rising enrollment among college-eligible youth, and the 7 percent growth in the
overall Hispanic population. There has been an increase in the population of young Hispanics.
This would then enable more young Hispanics to attend college and add to the number of
enrolled students. To attend college, a high school diploma is preferred and so in recent years,
the high school graduation rates of Hispanics have grown so their eligibility to attend a college
has also risen.
After interviewing Daniel Crane, a member of the Black Feet tribe of the Browning
Reservation in Montana, I have come up with a few ideas as to why there has been numbers of
Native Americans attending school. Increase in college enrollment for Native Americans for the
period from 1989-2011 is due to lack of quality careers and employment on reservations. Native
Americans lack education for the careers they are seeking in the reservations. They are not
educated enough to fulfill the job requirements and hence they are enrolling in colleges to better
their career future. Also better education means that they will be more competition with others
who are looking for high paying jobs. Enrollment for Native Americans has also increased due to
grants and scholarships which are available for minority students. Funds are available to them
when they qualify and hence achieve goals for future careers.
For many years African Americans have fought for equality in schools and colleges;
however college enrollment for African American has only been slowly increasing. So why
hasnt the enrollment of African American increase at a higher rate? According to Doctor Boyce
Watkinss interview with CNN, colleges and university are not hiring enough qualified African
American professors to teach. The reason behind this is that Doctor Boyce Watkins insists that
many African Americans students do not have a potential role model to follow. Not only has
there been lack of higher education role model for the black community, but there also arises
many obstacles in the black community. According to Nikole Hannah-Jones, of the Oregonian,
study reveals a community that falls near or at the bottom of almost every quality of life
indicator in the state, including infant mortality, high school graduation, and proximity to
environmental toxins, incarceration and poverty rates. With a community in such chaos it
remains difficult for many young African American to pursue a college education. With the
increasing tuition and decreasing college funding many African-American simply cannot afford
college.
In the mid-20th century, many Asian countries dealt with conflicts with the government.
China was ruled by Mao Zedong, the government would change to communism, and soon would
Vietnam change as well to communism. Those who did not agree with the government could no
longer live there, therefore many fled to America. At that time, America would recently open up
again to immigration. The Immigration Act of 1965 permitted residents of the Asia Pacific
Triangle to enter the United States as quota immigrants, which resulted in heavy emigrations
from Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Indochina. From Southeast Asia came about 130,000
refugees after the Vietnam War ended in 1975, and five years later the number increased to more
than 560,000. Because many Asian immigrants came around the 1970s, their children grew up
and would be around the appropriate age to go to college around 1990s-2000. Asian Americans
population increased greatly in school. Many are strongly influenced by the ancient legacy of
their parents, whose traditions emphasize family solidarity, discipline, hard work, and
schooling. Asian-Americans are outstandingly successful and the reason why is from their old-
world ethics from their parents, who had to work hard to fit in and find a career in America with
little English.
The reason for the increase in enrollment in universities varies for each minority. Overall,
minorities have a harder time enrolling in college because they are discriminated against.
Economist Gary Becker says that discrimination against minorities may cause them to
underinvest in education and training. However, in recent years there has been an increase in
college enrollment. More opportunities are given to minorities and favor them into attending
school so that there will be a more diverse workforce and society.
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