Purpose
The purpose of this book is to examine the research base that
can contribute to the current debates on racial diversity in colleges and universities,
and to help move the deliberation toward a data-based process. The structure
and content of the book flows from the deliberations of a distinguished panel
of researchers. It synthesizes and interprets this significant body of research
in a way that is understandable and accessible to a broad audience. This synthesis
of the research provides evidence and objectivity that can be used to inform
litigation and practice, and to develop a research agenda for this important
area of work.
Audience
The book represents a concerted effort to convey
complex information to an audience beyond academic scholars. For this reason,
we have limited the use of social science jargon, and raised arguments that
resonate with a more general readership that is interested in what research
might say about these issues. In addition, the volume is written in such a way
as to have a "tutorial" function, explaining how certain findings
were arrived at and the meanings of various terms. We include several diagrams,
illustrations, and tables of what different terms and concepts mean to enhance
readers’ understanding.
The following are the different target audiences
we envision for the volume:
- Students. This book integrates research from sociology,
social psychology, organizations, education, and psychometrics. The book will
serve as an appropriate text for graduate seminars on higher education and
education policy. It will also serve as supplementary text for graduate and
advanced undergraduate courses in sociology, social psychology, education,
and public policy.
- Researchers. Researchers in the field will benefit
from a volume that pulls together in a concise and understandable format various
strands of research on the topic of diversity and fairness. Several places
in the volume make suggestions for areas that are in need of further exploration,
and the conclusion will include suggestions for a research agenda in the area
of diversity in higher education.
- Higher education leaders. This volume also targets
administrators and trustees of colleges and universities facing issues of
student diversity, such as admissions policy and the reform of curriculum
and campus programs. This would include readers of the Chronicle of Higher
Education. Having a solid understanding of the research will provide a
framework for the improvement of practice in higher education, and will enable
better communication of the goals of diversity programs with their constituents.
- Parties involved in litigation. A small but important
audience is the lawyers, judges, and expert witnesses involved in court cases
that test affirmative action policies, such as those currently occurring at
the University of Michigan and the University of Washington. These high-profile
cases will also serve as media opportunities for the book to reach a wider
audience.
- General audience. The topic of affirmative action
and racial dynamics on college campuses is of great interest to anyone interested
in public policy and education. The best strategy to reach the general audience
would be through newspaper reporters who write on these issues.
