Graduation Equity for Undergraduate Black Men: A Multilevel Analysis of Four-Year Institutional Outcomes

Abstract

This study examined the organizational and state factors related to graduation equity for undergraduate Black men at 1,242 public and not-for-profit four-year institutions across the United States in 2020. Using data from the National Center for Education Statistics Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and policy data from The Education Trust, this study used a multilevel modeling approach to analyze the extent to which organizational context (i.e., control, HBCU designation, and selectivity), student services spending, and state attainment policy and context factors were associated with both organizational and state graduation equity outcomes. Combining Wood and Palmer’s (2015) model of institutional responsibility and Ray’s (2019) racialized organizations theory, this study employed a critical lens to understand how the distribution of organizational resources and alignment with race-conscious state attainment policy were associated with racial equity outcomes across the landscape of four-year higher education institutions. The findings of this study offer implications for policy and practice regarding resource distribution and policy effectiveness.