Andrew Cognard-Black, Pandion halieatus Professor of Sociology, is the lead author of a research article in the new issue of the Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council. Published in collaboration with Art Spisak, director emeritus of honors at the University of Iowa and past president of the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC), the article describes findings from path breaking research showing for the first time the extent of racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic homogeneity in honors programs at some of the largest universities in the United States. Titled “Forging a More Equitable Path for Honors Education: Advancing Racial, Ethnic, and Socioeconomic Diversity,” the article uses data on more than 100,000 university students to analyze the extent of diversity within honors programs. The article also presents findings from qualitative interviews with representatives of comparatively diverse honors programs to identify strategies that improve program diversity. Results from the study show that more diverse honors programs engage in robust efforts—including employing diverse faculty and staff—both to recruit and retain students from underrepresented minority groups.
A member of the NCHC Board of Directors, Cognard-Black also currently serves as the co-chair of the NCHC Research Committee, and he is the principal investigator of the National Survey of Student Engagement Honors Education Consortium and the 2021 Census of U.S. Honors Colleges, a survey project exploring the institutional characteristics of the approximately 250 honors colleges around the country.
