Download Higher Education History - Leadership Portfolio by Dawn Kimble

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Higher Education History
COMMUNICATION SKILLS
2. Demonstrate ability to communicate assertively
In HIAD 7412, Historical /Policy Perspectives the students had to write a paper and
present this information to the class in an assertive manner. In my paper, I tried to convey the
importance of the education system for minorities and African American’s. We also had to
identify five historical issues or events that shape the way higher education appears or looks or
behaves today. For each issue, 1) track its historical development and 2) explain what issues
today (especially policy issues) are affected by that history and 3) how. Lastly, 4) do you think
higher education is a prisoner of its history or not?
Scroll down for artifact-
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Higher Education History
HIGHER EDUCATION HISTORY:
EXAMINING THE CHANGING FACE OF HIGHER
EDUCATION
Dawn Kimble
HIAD 8412
July 11, 2011
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Higher Education History
Higher Education History:
Examining the Changing Face of Higher Education
Higher Education is sometimes viewed as an enormous entity that can easily provide you
with the “American Dream” on a platter or as an ever evasive mirage that denies you your hopes
and dreams. Over the years, obtaining a college education has been a guarantee for some, and a
hope for most. Higher education has historically been, at least until the proletariat revolutions of
the 20th Century, almost the exclusive territory of the aristocracy’s young males. This was a
place they could send their young to avoid the danger of interacting with city Workers (Micceri
2009) Taking on the characteristics and intentions of those in power, higher education has
catered to and provided for the upper class Caucasian male since its birth. “A college education
in the mid-nineteenth century was generally reserved for white men preparing for careers in
theology, medicine, or law, and above all for the well-to-do (since neither medicine nor law
called for much advanced training in those days, and such training as existed was often
perfunctory)”. (Johnstonp.??)? Higher Education has provided a conduit for religious beliefs and
supported societal norms, however dysfunctional. Prevailing social norms and a limited federal
role in higher education also served to keep higher education an exclusive domain before the
1960s. (Brock 2010)
While it has always promised to provide a better life and a plethora of benefits, it has still
ignored the needs of the greater majority. That tiny speck of hope, ever elusive to women,
minorities and the poor, when realized, became the foundation of some of the greatest
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Higher Education History
movements in higher education and American culture, but was it enough? In many parts of the
country, discriminatory laws and attitudes kept many blacks and other racial or ethnic minorities
from pursuing a college degree. Prevailing attitudes about the role of women limited their
college-going as well. (Brock 2010)
In order to change how society and higher education functioned, the hope of these
citizens to better themselves and to have their ideas and opinions valued in the halls of academia
had to give birth to some of the most influential legislation in history. Some of the most profound
changes in higher education began because of some of the legislation mentioned in these pages.
There are still discrepancies between the educational opportunities of the wealthy and lower
income citizens of the United States. For some, “the benefits of having a college education are
greater than ever, but low-income students continue to lag in three major areas: their college
enrollment rates are low; their degree completion rates are low; and their enrollment and
graduation rates from selective colleges are particularly low.” (Bernstein 2004, p.??)
Those ignored individuals in society followed the lead of a few small liberal colleges and with
the subsequent implementation of; The Morrill Act I and II, 1944-GI Bill, 1964-Civil Rights Act,
and the 1965-Higher Education Act, they began demanding recognition in the educational world.
The opportunity for admission, assistance with funding, and a larger variety of offered courses
are just a few of those demands. The changes that were made as a result of the aforementioned
legislation have over time influenced the American workforce and the professional world. They
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Higher Education History
not only changed the face of higher education but in turn they also changed the face of society.
The forward thinking of a small college in Oberlin, Ohio, helped to put in motion a movement
that would forever change how higher education looked to the world.
Oberlin College, a small institution located in Oberlin, Ohio just 35 miles southwest of
Cleveland, was founded in 1833 by a Presbyterian minister and a missionary, Rev. John J.
Shipherd and Philo P. Stewart (SOURCE?). They established the college on 500 acres of land
that was donated by 40 wealthy individuals. “They decided to establish a college and a colony
based on their religious beliefs, "where they would train teachers and other Christian leaders for
the boundless most desolate fields in the West."(May, p.??) They also adapted a belief that
regardless of color, all youth are received as members (SOURCE?). As a result, by the turn of
the century one-third of all African American graduates of predominantly white institutions in
the United States had graduated from Oberlin. Another trend that was seeded by Oberlin was
related to one of their mottos. “Learning and Labor.” Students that attended Oberlin were
expected to help contribute to and build their community so tuition was free. The concept
attracted many bright young people who would otherwise not have been able to afford tuition.
The inclusive example of Oberlin College reflected the future of higher education although it
would take many years for the rest of America to agree. (VERY BRIEF SECTION ON
OBERLIN)
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Higher Education History
The Morrill Act of 1862, also known as the land grant act, began as a political movement.
Passed on July 2, 1862, this act made it possible for new western states to establish colleges for
their citizens. The new land-grant institutions, which emphasized agriculture and mechanic arts,
opened opportunities to thousands of farmers and working people previously excluded from
higher education. (National Archives, 1995) The Morrill Act, led by Justin Smith Morrill was a
major boost to higher education in America. “Morrill, in his biographers note, regretted his own
lack of formal education and, as a Vermonter, saw the need for practical education in agriculture
and mechanics for the working people with whom he identified.”(Johnston) This act caused
education to shift from a focus on classical studies to those that would prepare students for the
working world. “In the mid-nineteenth century 80 percent of Americans lived in rural areas, and
about 60 percent of Americans were farmers (compared to 23 percent and 2 percent,
respectively, today), most of them eking out a subsistence living”(Johnston, p.??). Like the
efforts of Oberlin College, the Morrill Act tried to help underprivileged peoples to began
learning and providing for themselves. It was a noble effort but it wasn’t until 1890 that the
Morrill Act acknowledged people of color. “A second Morrill Act in 1890 was also aimed at the
former Confederate states, but this act required each state to show that race was not an
admissions criterion, or else to designate a separate land-grant institution for persons of color”
(May, p.??). It withheld federal funding from states that denied access based on race, unless a
separate institution was made available for minorities. This began the formation of historically
black colleges but did not recognize the issue of separate versus equal. It also did not ensure
equal opportunities in education or services.
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Higher Education History
To date, Land Grant colleges have enrolled almost three million students per year and
have awarded about 500,000 degrees each year. A third of all bachelor’s and master’s degrees,
60 percent of all doctoral degrees, and 70 percent of the nation’s engineering degrees were
attained at land grant colleges (SOURCE?). They have awarded more than 20 million degrees
since 1862. Presently, there is at least one land-grant institution in every state of the United
States. The
second Morrill Act has resulted in some southern states have two land-grant institutions, and
some western and plains states have several of the 1994 land-grant tribal colleges.(May)
Where the Morrill acts offered opportunities for farmers, middle class workers, the
industrial classes, and subsequently other races, the GI bill changed education in a different way.
It paved the way for WWI vets.”The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 was created to
help war veterans by giving them benefits to make up for time and opportunities lost. The GI Bill
was a major factor in motivating colleges and universities to create art departments and to offer
majors in art. Federal funds were given to individuals and to schools which competed for the
money. The “old master” apprentice system was transformed into the Bachelor of Fine Arts and
the Master of Fine Arts degree programs in the “visual” arts. A few schools also offered the
Doctor of Art degree” (Barnum, p.??)
Once again focusing on one population, only to exclude another, the GI Bill facilitated
education of millions of men and insured them a place in higher education at a time when very
few women were being hired in tenure track positions. (Barnum, p.??) The GI Bill changed the
face of the traditional college and university enrollment; returning WWI vets were afforded the
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Higher Education History
opportunity to attend college/acquire homes at little or no cost. Not only was this of dramatic
importance in federal funding of higher education, it exponentially changed the patterns of
enrollment for the next 50 years; as older vets realized the opportunity and benefits of a college
education, their off spring become second generation students who might not have valued or
been able to attend college.( Kulwant, 2009) After the Second World War, colleges and
universities frequently denied admission to non-veteran men and women to make room for
mostly male veterans to go to school. Beginning in the 1950s until their retirement, these
veterans were the artist-educators administrating and teaching at the university level. (Kulwan,t
2009)
The Civil Rights Act started with President John F. Kennedy on June 6, 1963; he urged
the nation, via television, to take action toward equal treatment of every American regardless of
race. It made discrimination in public places unlawful and integrated schools and other public
facilities. It provided civil rights for all races and opened college for entire population of people
previously denied access before; the Act resulted in peoples of all colors being placed in an
assumed environment of safety to exchange ideas and contribute to the generation of knowledge.
(Bernstein, 2004) The law was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964.
“An examination of the Act also provides a way to understand the climate of opinion regarding
African American rights, the nature of civil rights activity, the obstacles to political and social
change, the role of politics in the way issues are handled, the actions of individual senators and
representatives, and the nature of legislative activity in general”.(Bernstein, 2004 )
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Higher Education History
Historians now believe that the 1964 Act was of major importance to America’s political
and social development. Brock shows how changes in federal policy and public attitudes since
the mid-1960s have opened up higher education to women, minorities, and nontraditional
students and also shifted the “center of gravity” in higher education away from traditional fouryear colleges toward nonselective community colleges. (Brock, p.??) ”The act has been called
Johnson’s greatest achievement. He constantly referred to the morality of what he was doing and
made constant reference to the immorality of the social structure within America that tolerated
any form of discrimination. Johnson’s desire, regardless of his background, was to advance
America’s society and he saw the 1964 Civil Rights Act as the way forward”.( Bernstein, 2004 )
Title IV of the civil right act, similar to the second Morrill act, authorized but did not require
withdrawal of federal funds from programs which practiced discrimination. Despite these gains,
college access remains problematic, and gaps in enrollment between certain racial and ethnic
minority groups are substantial. In 2006, for example, 44 percent of whites between the ages of
eighteen and twenty-four were enrolled in college, compared with 32 percent of blacks and 25
percent of Hispanics.31 Rates of college attendance for black and Hispanic males are particularly
low. (Brock 2010)
The Higher Education Act provided the means necessary for low-income, low
socioeconomic students to attend college. This act created the Federal College Work Study
program and the Basic Education Opportunity Grant. Providing for millions of students who
previously could not afford to attend college, it is a federal law that governs the administration of
federal student aid programs. The HEA was originally passed in 1965 and signed into law by
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Higher Education History
President Lyndon B. Johnson. Access to higher education has been greatly expanded since the
mid-1960s. More students are attending college—both in real terms and as a percentage of the
population—and they are demographically more diverse. Actions taken by the federal
government clearly played a major part in these trends, though larger economic, demographic,
and social forces were also at play. (Brock 2010)
Traditionally, the United States higher education system has been the envy of the world
for its high quality, accessibility to millions of Americans, ability to train generations of skilled
workers, and its contribution to creating the vast American middle class. (Immerwahr 2007)
Between 1976 and 2004, the percentage of total undergraduate enrollment who was minority
students increased from 17 to 32 percent. By 1980, the percentage of females enrolled as
undergraduates surpassed the percentage of males enrolled as undergraduates. In 2004, the
gender gap was largest for Black undergraduates.
“While the benefits from education have increased, low-income students continue to
enroll in college at much lower rates than other students. At four-year institutions, two out of
every three students from the wealthiest quartile enroll within two years of high school
graduation, compared with one student in five from the bottom socioeconomic
quartile.”(Sharkey, 2005) Rising costs have caused widespread concern regarding the
opportunity for a higher education. Today more than 6 out of 10 Americans (62 percent) believe
that many qualified and motivated students do not have an opportunity to receive a higher
education. Notably, their concerns are at their highest point since the recession of the early ‘90s,
when many Americans feared that college was out of reach. (Immerwahr 2007)
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Higher Education History
In conclusion, although there have been efforts taken to ensure that the opportunities
afforded by higher education are available to all, there are still inequalities between the upper
and lower classes and the majority and minority individuals of our society. Is higher education a
prisoner to its history? In some ways it is. Even as we implement legislation to give more
opportunities to one group in society, it is realized that another is excluded. The Morrill Act I
and II, 1944-GI Bill, 1964-Civil Rights Act, and the 1965-Higher Education Act were all efforts
to ensure equal opportunity. They focused on the poor and underprivileged peoples of society
and also those who were initially excluded from pursuing higher education; minorities and
women. These efforts made it unlawful to deny higher education because of sex, age or race, but
even today we are faced with the reoccurring issues of inequality and exclusion.
“Today, almost forty years later, America has failed to make good on that promise of
equal opportunity. The benefits of having a college education are greater than ever, but lowincome students continue to lag in three major areas: their college enrollment rates are low; their
degree completion rates are low; and their enrollment and graduation rates from selective
colleges are particularly low.”(Sharkey, 2005) Although access to higher education has increased
substantially over the past forty years, student success in college—as measured by persistence
and degree attainment—has not improved at all. (Brock 2010)
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Higher Education History
REFERENCES
Barnum, Nancy The Effect of the 1944 G.I. Bill on Higher Education in Nursing
Bernstein, David E. (2004) The 1964 Civil Rights Act Is under Attack Today -- from Within
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Higher Education History
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Brock, Thomas (2010) Young Adults and Higher Education: Barriers and Breakthroughs
to Success www.futureofchildren.org VOL. 20 / NO. 1 /
CBS News, (2009) How the GI Bill Changed America
Gonzalez, Cristina (2010) Leadership Diversity and Succession Planning in Academia
The University of California
Immerwahr, John & Johnson, Jean (2007) Squeeze Play: How Parents and the Public Look
at Higher Education Today, The National Center for Public Policy and Higher
Education
Left Behind Unequal Opportunity in Higher Education, The century foundation
May, Craig L. Justin Smith Morrill and the Politics and Legacy of the Land Grant College Acts.
McCantz, J. (2003) The Early History of the Higher Education Act of 1965
National Trio Clearinghouse
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Higher Education History
Oakes, John Warren, How the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 (GI Bill)
Impacted Women Artists’ Career Opportunities
http://new.oberlin.edu/
http://new.oberlin.edu/about/history.dot
Sharkey, Amanda (2005) Paying for Postsecondary Education: An Issue Brief on College
Costs and Financial Aid the Center for American Progress
Micceri, Ph.D. Theodore (2009) How We Justify and Perpetuate the Wealthy, White,
Male Academic Status Quo Through the Use of Biased Admissions Requirements
Florida Association for Institutional Research Annual
Rai, Kulwant (2009) Did the GI Bill of 1944 Produce Persistent Effect on the US Economy?
Ramani, Angelina Kewal (2007) Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and
Ethnic Minorities National Center for Education Statistics
Zak, Michael (2000) The 'Republican' passed 1964 Civil Rights Act FreeRepublic.com
"A Conservative News Forum"