Florida Board of Governors

08/09/2010

Statement from State University System of Florida Chancellor Frank Brogan regarding two national data reports released today from the Education Trust in Washington, D.C., on colleges and universities

"The State University System of Florida is far, far above the national average when it comes to graduation rates for African-American and Hispanic students due to the hard work of thousands of committed individuals with our 11 state universities – from those in admissions and recruiting roles to the faculty, researchers and graduate assistants who guide and mentor students to the finish line.

While I am proud of our significant gains and historical increases, the State University System will continue its commitment to the aggressive efforts we have already undertaken to sustain and improve on this hard work – such as our participation in the Access to Success initiative with 23 other public higher education systems across America."

Background

The Education Trust, based in Washington, D.C., today released two companion briefs. They are entitled, "Big Gaps, Small Gaps: Some Colleges and Universities Outpace Others in Graduating African-American Students" and "Big Gaps, Small Gaps: Some Colleges and Universities Outpace Others in Graduating Hispanic Students." Hyperlink is below.

Meantime, the State University System of Florida has the following rankings on these issues:*

• Overall, the ranking for all graduation rates has Florida at 10th out of 51 (including Washington, D.C."s system), with 59.9 percent.


• The graduation percentage for black students is 50.9 percent, which translates to Florida"s rank as 5th among 51.


• The Hispanic student graduation percentage is 57.1 percent, for a ranking of 6th among 51.

*U.S. Dept. of Education Graduate Rate Survey, 2008. National Graduation (six-year) and retention rates. Data tables/charts available on request – please reply via email.

Finally, the "aggressive efforts" referenced in the statement above relate to two particular items, among many:

1. Starting with the 2009 State University System Annual Report, the Chancellor and the System"s 11 universities now include detailed data, including information on these above issues, in a comprehensive dashboard of measurements that are linked to work plans. The 2010 State University System Annual report is scheduled to be released in early 2011.


2. The State University System of Florida is one of 24 voluntary participants in the Access to Success Initiative, a project of the National Association of System Heads and The Education Trust. These 24 public higher education systems have pledged to cut the college-going and graduation gaps for low-income and minority students in half by 2015. Each Access to Success participating system sets its own path toward improvement targets yet agrees to a common set of metrics to evaluate progress. More information

Hyperlink to the national press release from The Education Trust and a link to the two reports.