This article is the first part in a series NCAN is producing in February 2025 for Black History Month. Read Parts Two, Three, and Four.
President Donald Trump’s first week of his second term ended numerous programs that supported people from historically marginalized, low-income backgrounds. Within the first 24 hours, the president rolled back diversity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts in various areas and sectors, including higher education institutions. In this article, I explore what diversity, inclusion, and accessibility is, it's role in higher education, and how to support Black students
as they navigate the current anti-diversity, inclusion, and accessibility climate.
What is Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility?
diversity, inclusion, and accessibility often includes programs and initiatives that reduce barriers for accessing resources, supports and services for historically marginalized communities.
Diversity, inclusion, and accessibility first emerged as a legal concept in 1964 following the passage of the Civil Rights Act, which banned discrimination based on race, skin color,
religion, sex, and other protected identities. Black civil rights activists and community organizers led calls for a more racially just country during the Civil Rights Movement and pushed for more comprehensive legislation that combatted racist and
discriminatory practices.
Why is diversity, inclusion, and accessibility important?
When implemented effectively, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility boosts numerous benefits to any space. In the workforce, it can make a space more welcoming to employees
across various backgrounds and identities. Employees can feel more included and comfortable in a space when diversity, inclusion, and accessibility is practiced and valued. It also creates more trust between leadership and the people they manage in all environments.
Diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in higher education
Diversity, inclusion, and accessibility at US colleges and universities looks like both greater college access and in-school support systems for students from historically marginalized backgrounds. Before being ruled unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court in 2023, race-conscious college
admissions practices, also known as affirmative action, was a diversity, inclusion, and accessibility-rooted policy that supported the enrollment of students from disadvantaged backgrounds into US colleges and universities. Diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in college admissions also looks like support systems to
ease the high school-to-college transition for students of color and consideration of financial aid for students from low-income backgrounds.
On college campuses, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility can look like student centers, shared identity clubs and institutional programming dedicated to multiculturalism and diversity. These initiatives provide resources to students from historically marginalized backgrounds who traditionally
have had limited access to postsecondary education.
The data proves that diversity, inclusion, and accessibility benefits Black students. Among the most selective US colleges and universities, close to 80% of schools lack accessibility and representation for Black students. Three in four American adults, including 83% of Black American adults, agree that all students, regardless of race and ethnicity, benefit from colleges and universities that reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the general US population. 65% of American adults, including 85% of Black American
adults, agree that US colleges and universities should hire more faculty and staff
of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.
This data is important because over one in five Black college students reported that they frequently or occasionally feel discriminated against at their
college or university.
President Trump’s anti-diversity, inclusion, and accessibility rhetoric
The president has labeled diversity, inclusion, and accessibility programs as “radical” and “wasteful,” while discounting the successes that diversity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts have offered Black
students and families. President Trump’s attacks on diversity, inclusion, and accessibility are the latest chapter in a long history of resistance to Black acceptance and success within higher education. While the Trump administration has been the leading advocate for anti-diversity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts,
he’s not the only one who supports such ideas. Many other elected officials share his sentiments and have championed the shutdown of diversity, inclusion, and accessibility programs.
Supporting Black students
Support can manifest differently depending on the context, but some ideas include:
Continue to seek feedback from Black students about admissions, curriculum, and existing school support systems.
Educate folx on the history of race, racism, and anti-Blackness in the United States.
Create affinity spaces for Black students away from school where they can feel comfortable expressing their lived experiences.
Highlight Black stories in college access journeys without tokenizing their identity.
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